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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 1979)
mmmmm 3~inaanos iAi\rx3 Mr. Ambassador breaks a tradition A&M grad greets America’s visitors Ambassador “Lalo” Valdez, ’64, here to see the Texas game, answers questions at a press confernce. Battalion photo by Clay Cockrill By LIZ NEWLIN Battalion Editor Usually a very wealthy, middle- aged man has his job — a man who is socially “well-connected.” Lalo is not. He is the son of a migrant farm family from Floresville, about 30 miles southeast of San Antonio. Abelardo Lopez “Lalo” Valdez, 37, is chief of protocol of the United States and has the rank of ambas sador. It’s his job to take care of foreign chiefs of state and heads of govern ments when they are in America. Valdez, who graduated from Texas A&M in 1964 with a degree in civil engineering, said President Jimmy Carter had definite reasons for his non-traditional selection. “I believe Carter picked me be cause he wanted someone who could do the job and do it well,” Valdez said in a interview last weekend. “Secondly, he wanted to have a different kind of person, from a dif ferent culture, with language ability.” Valdez did not learn to speak En glish until he was in the third grade, but now even most of his Texas accent is gone. “Carter was trying to recognize through me a very large Hispanic community,” he continued, one that had not been recognized at all until the Georgian’s administration. Val dez said the United States has the fourth largest Spanish-speaking population in the Western Hemis phere, which is just now coming into its own economically and politically. Valdez has been in a good posi tion to observe that growth in this nation and others. From mid-1977 until his appointment in late Sep tember, he supervised the U.S. economic aid programs throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. The United States will become more dependent on Latin America for trade, he says, because the countries offer markets that will grow. Already the Latin American markets translate into employment for one of three farms and one of eight manufacturing jobs here. Hispanics are vital, he contends, because they can act as “two-way translators,” something that has been missing in Anglo-Hispanic re lations. “With their commonalities and struggle for economic develop ment, they can relate successfully with Latin America,” the ambassa dor said. “You just have to look at the his tory of Latin American relations to see the numerous misunderstand ings between the two sides.” Some of the conflicts and suspicions were generated by cultural differences that American Hispanics would understand, he said. The Carter administration has tried to remedy that void by appoint ing several Hispanic judges and other officials. “The president generally has a high priority for Latin America,” the ambassador said, citing the Panna- ma Canal issue as an example. Carter stuck his neck out to support returning the Panama Canal even though it was politically unpopular. The U.S. legislature has also re cently taken a kinder view of Latin America. “The Congress did pass legisla tion which I was sort of instrumental in getting,” he said. The act states “the sense of the Congress” is that America shall place high priority on both private and public funding for Latin America and the Caribbean. “Beautiful language,” Valdez said, explaining that Congress had not made similar statements about what the country ought to invest in. Before the legislation and in the 10 years before Carter, "transition al developing countries” in Latin America had seen U.S. govern ment aid budgets, budget cut from $600 million to less than $200 mil lion. During that time, international policymakers said the Latin Amer ican countries no longer needed assistance. “They were all wrong,” said Val dez, who has written numerous scholarly articles on the subject. Even though Latin American per capital income was about $550, and half the world was below the $250 poverty line, U.S. per capita income was about $9,000. Latin America was not in the middle class as claimed. “I couldn’t figure that out,” he said. The nations are in a critical situation economically and, in some cases, politically. “We are fooling ourselves to be lieve that (the countries don’t need help) and not make an investment.” While he was the chief Latin American economic officer, Valdez persuaded many businessmen and local governments to offer assist ance, often for their own benefit. Again, he says his major achievement was the Congression al recognition of the need. “Before, they were kind of cut ting, cutting, cutting.” To aid the bill ki Congress, he helped build a constituency for the act from the Hispanic community, chambers of commerce and labor unions. But the understanding these countries need help must reach more people. “We need to increase the aware ness of the American public of the interdependence. That’s why I’m so excited about the initiative A&M has taken,” he said, echoing his state ment at a press conference earlier in the weekend. “This President Jarvis Miller is trying to put A&M on the world map.’’ Texas A&M has a great oppor tunity to enter the international sphere by training students and in volving faculty in the new Interna tional Center, he said. “I hope to be of some assistance to students,” he says, “to give advice and moral support.” And this is where Latin American affairs and Valdez’ new job link back together. “I hope to be bringing some ambassadors here, as well as to other parts of the state.” He proposes a “visitng ambas sadors” program that would get the foreign representatives out of Washington, D.C., and into the countryside. The ambassadors would gain a better perspective of America, and Texas A&M would be a good place to bring them, Valdez said. “You can’t tell people about Texas A&M. They have to experi ence it,” he said, reflecting on his alma mater. “I feel so indebted about the be nefits it gave me,” the ambassador said. “I hope my children will attend A&M.” After Texas A&M and being com missioned in the U.S. Army, he was assigned to duty at the White House and became interested in in ternational affairs. Then he earned law degrees at Baylor and Harvard universities, rare for Hispanic students in those days, and worked in private interna tional law before entering the gov ernment. “All of this helped to develop, one, an ability to deal with other cultures, languages, and two, to deal with very important people.” Confidence is important to the chief of protocol; if he freezes, he can’t function. “You realize presidents and kings are people too,” Valdez said, a veteran of two months. “Protocol is really common cour tesy and common sense in dealing with other people.” But one of his first major assign ments, greeting Pope Paul II, was uncommon. Valdez, his wife and Mrs. Carter flew to Boston to greet the pope. “When we got to the top of the stairs (of the airplane), there was the pope, surrounded by bishops. “I felt like I had walked in on a scene in the Vatican,” said Valdez, a Roman Catholic. “It was such a dramatic meeting. “He has the body of a very pow erful person and such a sweet face — it’s such a contradiction. “The first words he said were, ‘America ... it’s a strange place.’” It was in perfect English, Valdez re membered. “It threw me completely off- stride.” Let Us Make Your Christmas Candy for Holiday Gift-Giving! 13 Kinds of homemade fudge All flavors-one price Come in for your free sample {hXfiEffj&z fj-* [.aza J^cuzSoLLe czHotEi