Larry Leon Palmer
Encyclopedia
Larry Leon Palmer is a United States
diplomat and a former United States Ambassador to Honduras
(2002 - 2005). He has been the President of the Inter-American Foundation
since 2005.
. He graduated from Emory University
with a B.A. in 1970 and completed his graduate training at Texas Southern University
(M.Ed., African History, 1973) and Indiana University
at Bloomington (Ed. D., Higher Education Administration and African Studies, 1978).
in Winston Salem, North Carolina (1978-1981).
Palmer entered the U.S. Foreign Service in 1982. He served as vice consul in the Dominican Republic (1982-1984), and then as personnel officer in Montevideo, Uruguay, and Asuncion, Paraguay, from 1984 to 1986. He worked in the State Department as staff assistant to the Assistant Secretary for African Affairs from 1986-87 and then served as counselor for administration in Freetown, Sierra Leone from 1987 to 1989.
In 1989, Palmer became a Pearson Fellow, serving as assistant to the president of the University of Texas at El Paso. His portfolio was advancing the North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA), creating faculty and student exchange opportunities in universities throughout Mexico, and serving as university consultant for International Affairs. At the end of two years as a Pearson Fellow, Palmer left to serve as personnel officer in Seoul
, South Korea, (1991-1994), and later served as counselor for administration in the Dominican Republic (1994-1998).
From 1998-1999, he attended the Senior Seminar. He arrived in Quito, Ecuador to begin a tour as Deputy Chief of Mission in August 1999. He finished his tour in Quito as Chargé d'Affaires In July 2002.
Palmer was sworn in as United States Ambassador to Honduras
on September 9, 2002, by Secretary of State Colin Powell
and delivered his credentials to the Honduran President Ricardo Maduro on October 9, 2002. On June 28th, 2010 President Obama nominated Palmer as United States Ambassador to Venezuela
. However, a start date as new ambassador to Venezuela wasn't announced. On September 19, 2010, President Hugo Chávez announced on his weekly TV program that he would not allow Larry Palmer to take up his post in Caracas. Chávez's refusal is based on Palmer having recently told a US senator that morale in the Venezuelan army was low and that members of Chávez's government had ties to leftist Colombian rebels. On December 28, 2010 Chavez defied the Obama administration's appointment of Palmer as ambassador to Venezuela and flatly refusing him, accusing him of having made disrespectful remarks about Venezuela. In response, on December 29 the U.S. revoked the visa
of Venezuela's ambassador, Bernardo Álvarez Herrera
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
diplomat and a former United States Ambassador to Honduras
United States Ambassador to Honduras
The following is a list of United States Ambassadors, or other Chiefs of Mission, to Honduras. The title given by the United States State Department to this position is currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.-See also:...
(2002 - 2005). He has been the President of the Inter-American Foundation
Inter-American Foundation
The Inter-American Foundation, or IAF, is an independent agency of the United States government that funds development projects undertaken by grassroots groups and nongovernmental organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean...
since 2005.
Background
Larry Palmer was born in Augusta, GeorgiaAugusta, Georgia
Augusta is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. As of the 2010 census, the Augusta–Richmond County population was 195,844 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.Augusta is the principal city of the Augusta-Richmond County...
. He graduated from Emory University
Emory University
Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...
with a B.A. in 1970 and completed his graduate training at Texas Southern University
Texas Southern University
Texas Southern University is a historically black university located in Houston, Texas, United States....
(M.Ed., African History, 1973) and Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...
at Bloomington (Ed. D., Higher Education Administration and African Studies, 1978).
Career
Prior to joining the United States Foreign Service, Palmer served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Liberia, West Africa (1971-1973), as assistant director of financial aid at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville (1973-1974), as a professor of history at Cuttington College in Suakoko, Liberia (1974-1976), and at Wake Forest UniversityWake Forest University
Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is...
in Winston Salem, North Carolina (1978-1981).
Palmer entered the U.S. Foreign Service in 1982. He served as vice consul in the Dominican Republic (1982-1984), and then as personnel officer in Montevideo, Uruguay, and Asuncion, Paraguay, from 1984 to 1986. He worked in the State Department as staff assistant to the Assistant Secretary for African Affairs from 1986-87 and then served as counselor for administration in Freetown, Sierra Leone from 1987 to 1989.
In 1989, Palmer became a Pearson Fellow, serving as assistant to the president of the University of Texas at El Paso. His portfolio was advancing the North American Free Trade Agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
(NAFTA), creating faculty and student exchange opportunities in universities throughout Mexico, and serving as university consultant for International Affairs. At the end of two years as a Pearson Fellow, Palmer left to serve as personnel officer in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
, South Korea, (1991-1994), and later served as counselor for administration in the Dominican Republic (1994-1998).
From 1998-1999, he attended the Senior Seminar. He arrived in Quito, Ecuador to begin a tour as Deputy Chief of Mission in August 1999. He finished his tour in Quito as Chargé d'Affaires In July 2002.
Palmer was sworn in as United States Ambassador to Honduras
United States Ambassador to Honduras
The following is a list of United States Ambassadors, or other Chiefs of Mission, to Honduras. The title given by the United States State Department to this position is currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.-See also:...
on September 9, 2002, by Secretary of State Colin Powell
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
and delivered his credentials to the Honduran President Ricardo Maduro on October 9, 2002. On June 28th, 2010 President Obama nominated Palmer as United States Ambassador to Venezuela
United States Ambassador to Venezuela
The following is a list of United States ambassadors, or other chiefs of mission, to Venezuela. The title given by the United States State Department to this position is currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary.-Ambassadors:...
. However, a start date as new ambassador to Venezuela wasn't announced. On September 19, 2010, President Hugo Chávez announced on his weekly TV program that he would not allow Larry Palmer to take up his post in Caracas. Chávez's refusal is based on Palmer having recently told a US senator that morale in the Venezuelan army was low and that members of Chávez's government had ties to leftist Colombian rebels. On December 28, 2010 Chavez defied the Obama administration's appointment of Palmer as ambassador to Venezuela and flatly refusing him, accusing him of having made disrespectful remarks about Venezuela. In response, on December 29 the U.S. revoked the visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
of Venezuela's ambassador, Bernardo Álvarez Herrera
Bernardo Alvarez Herrera
Bernardo Álvarez Herrera Venezuela's ambassador to the United States, since 2003 . Álvarez has been a Professor at Universidad Central de Venezuela's School of Political and Administrative Studies...
.