Howard Wolpe
Encyclopedia
Howard Eliot Wolpe III was a seven-term U.S. Representative
from Michigan and Presidential Special Envoy to the African Great Lakes
Region in the Clinton Administration, where he led the United States delegation to the Arusha and Lusaka peace talks, which aimed to end civil wars in Burundi
and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
. He returned to the State Department as Special Advisor to the Secretary for Africa's Great Lakes Region. Previously, he served as Director of the Africa Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
, and of the Center’s Project on Leadership and Building State Capacity. While at the Center, Wolpe directed post-conflict leadership training programs in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Liberia
.
A specialist in African politics for ten of his fourteen years in the Congress, Wolpe chaired the Subcommittee on Africa of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. As Africa Subcommittee Chair, Wolpe authored and managed legislation imposing sanctions against South Africa
, and over-riding President Ronald Reagan
's veto of the sanctions legislation (the Comprehensive Anti-apartheid Act of 1986). He also authored and managed the passage of the African Famine Recovery and Development Act, -- a comprehensive rewrite in the 1980s of America's approach to development assistance in Africa, that included the creation of the African Development Fund. In 1992 redistricting made it unlikely that Wolpe would be re-elected and he retired from Congress.
Prior to entering the Congress, Wolpe served in the Michigan House of Representatives and as a member of the Kalamazoo City Commission. In 1994, he won the Democratic nomination for Governor of Michigan and selected his former rival in the Democratic primary, State Senator
Debbie Stabenow
(now a US Senator), as his nominee for Lieutenant Governor. The Wolpe-Stabenow ticket lost the general election to incumbent Governor John Engler
and Lieutenant Governor Connie Binsfeld
.
Wolpe taught at Western Michigan University
(Political Science Department), Michigan State University
, and the University of Michigan
(Institute of Public Policy Studies), and served as a Visiting Fellow in the Foreign Policy Studies Program of the Brookings Institution, as a Woodrow Wilson Center Public Policy Scholar, and as a consultant to the World Bank and to the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. State Department.
Wolpe received his B.A. degree from Reed College
, and his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
. He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the National Endowment for Democracy
(NED), of the Board of Directors of Africare
, of the Board of Directors of Pathfinders, International, and of the Advisory Board of Coexistence International. He co-directed (with Ambassador David C. Miller, Jr.) the Ninetieth American Assembly on “Africa and U.S. National Interests” held in March 1997. He wrote extensively on Africa, American foreign policy, and the management of ethnic and racial conflict.
Howard Wolpe was married to Judy Wolpe until her death in 2006. He died on October 25, 2011 at his home in Saugatuck, Michigan.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Michigan and Presidential Special Envoy to the African Great Lakes
African Great Lakes
The African Great Lakes are a series of lakes and the Rift Valley lakes in and around the geographic Great Rift Valley formed by the action of the tectonic East African Rift on the continent of Africa...
Region in the Clinton Administration, where he led the United States delegation to the Arusha and Lusaka peace talks, which aimed to end civil wars in Burundi
Burundi
Burundi , officially the Republic of Burundi , is a landlocked country in the Great Lakes region of Eastern Africa bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and south, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west. Its capital is Bujumbura...
and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
. He returned to the State Department as Special Advisor to the Secretary for Africa's Great Lakes Region. Previously, he served as Director of the Africa Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars , located in Washington, D.C., is a United States Presidential Memorial that was established as part of the Smithsonian Institution by an act of Congress in 1968...
, and of the Center’s Project on Leadership and Building State Capacity. While at the Center, Wolpe directed post-conflict leadership training programs in Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Liberia
Liberia
Liberia , officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Sierra Leone on the west, Guinea on the north and Côte d'Ivoire on the east. Liberia's coastline is composed of mostly mangrove forests while the more sparsely populated inland consists of forests that open...
.
A specialist in African politics for ten of his fourteen years in the Congress, Wolpe chaired the Subcommittee on Africa of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. As Africa Subcommittee Chair, Wolpe authored and managed legislation imposing sanctions against South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, and over-riding President Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
's veto of the sanctions legislation (the Comprehensive Anti-apartheid Act of 1986). He also authored and managed the passage of the African Famine Recovery and Development Act, -- a comprehensive rewrite in the 1980s of America's approach to development assistance in Africa, that included the creation of the African Development Fund. In 1992 redistricting made it unlikely that Wolpe would be re-elected and he retired from Congress.
Prior to entering the Congress, Wolpe served in the Michigan House of Representatives and as a member of the Kalamazoo City Commission. In 1994, he won the Democratic nomination for Governor of Michigan and selected his former rival in the Democratic primary, State Senator
Michigan Senate
The Michigan Senate is the upper house of the Michigan Legislature. The Senate consists of 38 members, who are elected from constituencies having approximately 212,400 to 263,500 residents....
Debbie Stabenow
Debbie Stabenow
Deborah Ann Greer "Debbie" Stabenow is the junior United States Senator from Michigan and a member of the Democratic Party. Before her election to the U.S. Senate, she was a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Michigan's 8th congressional district from 1997 to 2001...
(now a US Senator), as his nominee for Lieutenant Governor. The Wolpe-Stabenow ticket lost the general election to incumbent Governor John Engler
John Engler
John Mathias Engler is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He served as the 46th Governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003....
and Lieutenant Governor Connie Binsfeld
Connie Binsfeld
Connie Berube Binsfeld is a retired Republican politician from the U.S. State of Michigan.-Biography:...
.
Wolpe taught at Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
(Political Science Department), Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
, and the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
(Institute of Public Policy Studies), and served as a Visiting Fellow in the Foreign Policy Studies Program of the Brookings Institution, as a Woodrow Wilson Center Public Policy Scholar, and as a consultant to the World Bank and to the Foreign Service Institute of the U.S. State Department.
Wolpe received his B.A. degree from Reed College
Reed College
Reed College is a private, independent, liberal arts college located in southeast Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus located in Portland's Eastmoreland neighborhood, featuring architecture based on the Tudor-Gothic style, and a forested canyon wilderness...
, and his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. He is a former member of the Board of Directors of the National Endowment for Democracy
National Endowment for Democracy
The National Endowment for Democracy, or NED, is a U.S. non-profit organization that was founded in 1983 to promote US-friendly democracy by providing cash grants funded primarily through an annual allocation from the U.S. Congress...
(NED), of the Board of Directors of Africare
Africare
Africare is a non-profit organization based in the United States which provides development aid for Africa. Africare was founded in 1970 by former Peace Corps members who had worked in eastern Niger, as well as a Nigerian diplomat. Africare now provides aid for approximately 25 countries in every...
, of the Board of Directors of Pathfinders, International, and of the Advisory Board of Coexistence International. He co-directed (with Ambassador David C. Miller, Jr.) the Ninetieth American Assembly on “Africa and U.S. National Interests” held in March 1997. He wrote extensively on Africa, American foreign policy, and the management of ethnic and racial conflict.
Howard Wolpe was married to Judy Wolpe until her death in 2006. He died on October 25, 2011 at his home in Saugatuck, Michigan.
External links
- Congressional biography
- Wilson Center biography
- Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
- Listen to a 73 min audio interview with Howard Wolpe on his career with Africa and U.S. foreign policy in the Congress, taped at Michigan State University in 2003 http://archive.lib.msu.edu/VVL/vincent/afstudies/media/wolpe120803.ram