WASHINGTON (AP) – The United States named its first international envoy for gay rights Feb. 23, tasking a veteran diplomat with leading U.S. efforts to fight violence and discrimination against LGBT individuals overseas.
Randy Berry, currently the consul general in the Netherlands, will promote human rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals, Secretary of State John Kerry said. A longtime foreign service officer, Berry has served at U.S. posts in Bangladesh, Egypt, Uganda and South Africa, and speaks Spanish and Arabic.