Crossing Bridges in the Peace Corps
I’m told that less than 200 RPCVs attended last month’s NPCV conference in Minnesota. With over 210,000 RPCVs and Peace Corps Staff 200 turning up for an NPCA Conference isn’t much of a showing. Now, what does that poor attendance tell us about RPCVs? How insignificant and unimportant are we in the eyes of the power brokers of the U.S.? Last September, as we know, we had the 50th Reunion in D.C. and it did attract RPCVs from across the country, but no ‘official Washington types’ beyond a few Peace Corps Staff turned out to recognize what we had done for America. No senators or members of Congress came to the official and unofficial gatherings, except for the Library of Congress Luncheon that Marian Beil and I organized for Peace Corps Writers. There was an ‘official’ event earlier in the summer at the State Department but it wasn’t for ordinary RPCVs. Or at least I didn’t get invited. (Well, maybe . . .
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The Peace Corps is an icon, not a political power player. We could have been if we had followed John…