Celebrating Black History Month: Clifton Wharton, Sr., first African-American ambassador

Clifton Wharton Sr., born May 11, 1899 in Baltimore, Maryland, became the first African-American ambassador and the first African-American Foreign Service Officer to become chief of a diplomatic mission.  

He practiced law in Boston before joining the US State Department in the Foreign Service.  He became Vice Consul in Monrovia in 1927, Consul in Las Palmas in 1932, Minister to Romania in 1958, and then Ambassador to Norway in 1961 until his death.

Wharton passed away in Phoenix, Arizona in September 1964.

Happy birthday, Czech cosmonaut Vladimir Remek!

Vladimir Remek, born September 26, 1948 in the former Czechoslovakia, went into space aboard Soyuz 28 to Salyut 6 in March 1978.  He is the first and, so far, the only Czech citizen to travel into space.

After his only mission, he became a member of the European Parliament and is currently the Czech ambassador to Russia.

Celebrating Pride Month - James Hormel, first openly gay ambassador for U.S.

James Hormel, born January 1, 1933 in Austin, Minnesota, is the first openly gay man to serve as a U.S. Ambassador.  He is a grandson and an heir to the founder of the Hormel Foods. 

In 1994, President Clinton considered him to be the ambassador to Fiji, but at the time gay sex in Fiji was punishable by prison sentences so his nomination was never forwarded.

In 1997, Clinton nominated him as ambassador to Luxembourg, which had removed laws prohibiting consensual same-sex acts in the 1800s.  Despite vigorous opposition, his nomination was approved and he was sworn in as ambassador in June 1999.