Albright offered not only an historical perspective to geo-political
events that have shaped the 20th century, but also an assessment of
how American foreign policy has evolved as the result of terrorist acts,
beginning with the 1998 embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania that
killed 224 people—including 12 Americans—and the recent terrorist
attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
At a press conference preceding her presentation in Alumni Arena, Albright
said that while many international issues were beginning to affect the
United States before the attacks of Sept. 11, in many ways Americans
still felt secure, in spite of the increasing pressure of what she called
the "new global issues that know no borders, such as climate change,
disease and drugs." As well, she said, the mood in America was quite
different in 1998 than it has been since the events of this fall.
"Frankly, there was not the outcry and support that was necessary to
mobilize a nation in the way that has happened after Sept. 11," she
said.
Although American embassies were bombed, their locations in Africa
and the fact that few Americans were killed did not fuel the kind of
public support needed to pursue active anti-terrorist policies.
While praising President George W. Bush's efforts to deal with Osama
bin Laden and his network of terrorists, Albright didn't hesitate to
criticize what she saw as his initial "unilateral response" to the Sept.
11 attacks, expressing the hope that the current administration would
not rely on a "uni-dimensional foreign policy—one that deals with
issues through the prism of terrorism."
Although Albright supports the current military action against the
Taliban regime in Afghanistan, she encouraged Americans to see the attacks
as part of a long process to rid the world of terrorism.
"This is just the beginning of the story—the end of the first
chapter—and this is a long book. I hope that I am pleasantly surprised
by the fact that the American people stick with it, and that they understand
that this is going to require a lot of patience in an unclear kind of
setting, with no exact victories."
The most troubling aspect of the government's response to terrorism
at home, has, in Albright's opinion, been the tightening grip on First
Amendment rights.
"I must say, I'm a bit surprised at some of the actions being taken
by the justice department in limiting some of our basic freedoms," she
said. The most difficult challenge as a result, she pointed out, "will
be to find the balance between security and democracy" in the administration's
approach to homeland security and in its efforts abroad, noting that
"it's especially hard to defend against terrorists who think that suicide
is the direct route to paradise."
Echoing the rhetoric of most politicos since the terrorist attacks
in New York City, she called the current conflict a "clash between civilization
itself and brutishness."
"The scope and drama of the current confrontation has caused some to
conclude that everything has changed and that the world will never be
the same, but I'm not ready to accept that," she told the enthusiastic
crowd. "From a foreign-policy perspective, this may be the most fluid
and dynamic moment since the Cold War's end."
However, she said the most unpredictable aspect of the war in Afghanistan
is its "potential to aggravate or alleviate long-standing conflicts,"
including the Middle East. Although supportive of Israel, Albright acknowledged
that the current stalemate is part of a larger, ongoing geopolitical
crisis that is destabilizing the entire region and one in which the
Palestinians fear they never will have a viable homeland that isn't
"always subject to the will of others."
Albright repeatedly emphasized the importance of restoring the rights
of women—in not only Afghanistan, but around the globe—so
that they too, might "achieve equal access to economic stability."
"No society can prosper if half its people are treated like second-class
citizens," said Albright.
"I am convinced that the Taliban's treatment of women reveals a deeper
intolerance that is at odds with most interpretations of Islam and contrary
to the traditions of Afghanistan," she said, adding that it was a particular
joy to see, after the liberation of Kabul by the Northern Alliance,
women moving about freely in the streets without their faces covered
and without escort.
