Edward Joseph Perkins (June 8, 1928 – November 7, 2020) was an American career diplomat who served as U.S. Ambassador to Liberia, South Africa, the United Nations, and Australia. He also served as the Director General of the U.S. Department of State's Diplomatic Corps.

Early life and education

Perkins was born in Sterlington, Louisiana. As a result, Perkins eventually moved - first to Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and then to Portland, Oregon, and graduated there in 1947 from Jefferson High School. It was during this period that he began to consider his dream of becoming a diplomat, after attending a local international relations club meeting at which several consuls general spoke.

Career

Enthusiastic about seeing the wider world beyond the United States, Perkins enlisted in the United States Army, serving for three years. A return to civilian life would prove temporary; he again enlisted, this time in the United States Marine Corps, and served for four years in Japan, Hawaii, and South Korea. This period saw Perkins become interested in the study of Eastern philosophy.

Concerned with the lack of support for fellow black members of the Foreign Service, Perkins became a founding member of the Thursday Luncheon Group with John W.H. Gravely, a weekly support and advocacy group for black officers.

Perkins was then appointed ambassador to South Africa in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan. From the beginning, this position would prove to be a challenge – the naming of the black ambassador to the post was seen as a concession by Reagan to ward off sanctions by the United States Congress. Several Black civil rights leaders approached Perkins, advising against accepting the appointment, including the Rev. Jesse Jackson. During his appointment tenure, Perkins focused on improving communication between blacks, whites, and other ethnic groups in the country, holding integrated receptions, attending church services, and visiting South African towns and villages. He overcame South African black activists’ initial hostility towards him through “carefully chosen shots” at the South African regime that demonstrated solidarity with the country’s victims of apartheid, including attendance at the Delmas Treason Trial. In 1993, he was appointed representative to the Commonwealth of Australia, where he served until 1996 before retiring at the rank of Career Minister in the United States Foreign Service.

He taught at the University of Oklahoma where he served as Senior Vice Provost Emeritus of International Programs at the International Program Center, and Professor Emeritus of the School of International and Area Studies. He was a member of the American Academy of Diplomacy.

In 2006, Perkins’ memoir, Mr. Ambassador, Warrior for Peace, was published by the University of Oklahoma Press.

In 2007, Perkins moved to Washington, D.C. On September 3, 2009, his wife, Lucy Cheng-Mei Liu, died.

Perkins died on November 7, 2020, after a stroke.

Personal life

After he was discharged from the Marine Corps, Perkins took a civilian job with the Army and Air Forces Exchange Services in Taiwan. It was during this time that he met his future wife, Lucy Ching-mei Liu. Liu’s traditional Taiwanese family did not want her to marry a black American, necessitating an elopement between the two in Taipei in 1962. They had two children, Katherine and Sarah Perkins, and four grandchildren.

Writings

  • Mr. Ambassador, Warrior for Peace (memoirs,) published by The University of Oklahoma Press in 2006.
  • The Palestinian Refugees: Old Problems - New Solutions (Studies in peace politics in the Middle East) - co-editor with Joseph Ginat, Sussex Academic Press, 2002.
  • The Middle East Peace Process: Vision Versus Reality (Studies in peace politics in the Middle East) - co-editor with Joseph Ginat, Sussex Academic Press, 2002.
  • Palestinian Refugees: Traditional Positions and New Solutions = co-editor with Joseph Ginat, University of Oklahoma Press, 2001.
  • The seedlings of hope: U.S. policy in Africa, U.S. Department of State, 1989.

References

  • Directors General of the Foreign Service/Directors of the Bureau of Human Resources
  • Representatives of the U.S.A. to the United Nations
  • Edward J. Perkins
  • biography and citations
  • University of Maryland University College / Achiever Summer 2007 article
  • Norma M. Riccucci (1995). Unsung Heroes: Federal Execucrats Making a Difference. Georgetown University Press.]
  • The Legacy of Ambassador Edward J. Perkins: Reflections on Families in the Diplomatic Service, National Museum of American Diplomacy

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