A rainy morning with a tornado danger alert marked the beginning of Diario Libre’s visit to the US Department of State, where it was waiting for us Laura Jiménezthe only Dominican woman who advises the president Joe Biden in the affairs of the Western Hemisphere, which covers the area of North America, Central America and the Caribbean.
Laura was born in Santo Domingo, right in front of the park of the San Miguel church, and at the age of five she came to the South Bronx, although she highlights that she grew up between both countries, since she frequently visited her father, in addition to having the opportunity to return to the DR to complete his secondary education.
Prior to her current position, the Dominican held several politically related positions in South Florida, one of them as chief of staff for state senator José Javier Rodríguez. In 2016, she worked for the Hillary Clinton campaign, and as director of the Latino vote on the Biden candidacy. When she won the presidential election, she was part of her transition team, and from the first day of the Biden administration she started working at the State Department.
“In the last elections I knew that I wanted to participate, that I wanted to do my part, I felt that my community, that the Latino community had a lot to lose, and I always knew that he, then Vice President Biden, was the one who could make the change that I wanted to see, and that I could help my community, so I waited for him to run, I had other opportunities and I said no, I’m going to wait, because I was confident that he is the one with the experience and leadership to get us out go ahead,” Jimenez said.
The Summit of the Americas
The Dominican is submerged in the next Summit of the Americas which will be held in Los Angeles, California, from June 6 to 10. With her, we discussed the planning process, the countries invited, and the main topics that President Biden wishes to discuss with the leaders of the region.
“I believe that all the peoples of the hemisphere are going through similar challenges, we all share the same hope for our families, for our peoples, our countries, and we can do much more together, then agree with these governments, sit down together, talk about how we can move forward as a hemisphere, how we get out of the pandemic, how we can provide opportunities to our peoples, is something that will help and benefit each of our countries, and the region itself,” said Jiménez.
Among the main issues that President Biden wants to discuss with the leaders of the region, he said are the climate crisis, the pandemic, economic opportunities and migration.
“It is also something that we are going to talk about, because it is something regional, it is something that we all have to deal with together,” he said on the immigration issue.
We talked with Laura about the invitations to the Summit and the questioning of countries like Brazil and Mexico not to attend if countries like Cuba and Venezuela are excluded from the meeting. On this, she assured that the invitations began to go out, and that they have not yet reached the total number of countries that will be invited.
“I would say we are still in the invitations. Now of the countries that feel that there is a problem with who is invited or who is going to participate, I would say that at the end of the day, it is up to each country to decide if they are going to participate, but the president hopes that all the countries, that all democratic leaders participate… the president is hopeful that the region will take this opportunity, and the reality is that whoever is present, whoever participates in the Summit, will see the benefits for their own people”, highlighted the Dominican.
When asked about the possibility of a boycott at the Summit, due to the controversial reactions of some countries in the region, Laura assured that each country decides whether to participate or not.
“I repeat, the president hopes that those who have been invited will participate, because the region really needs to have this conversation and it will be something that will benefit all our peoples and the hemisphere,” he said.
Laura assures that thanks to the more than two million Dominicans who live in the US and the US citizens who visit the DR, relations between the two countries are a priority due to the existing connections, and they see the opportunity to continue on that path. “Personally, everything that has to do with Dominican women motivates me. We know that where women are, and where they have the opportunity to lead and get ahead, it is good not only for women and their families, but also for the country and for the hemisphere, that is something we have seen.”