Political Quotes

“I wish to honor the life of Anita Ashok Datar--a loving mother, beloved daughter and sister, and dedicated humanitarian from Takoma Park in my home State of Maryland. She was one of 19 victims killed on November 20 in a terrorist attack in Mali. Anita's life was one of service to others, both at home and abroad. She was born in Massachusetts and raised in Flanders, NJ. Her friends and classmates remember her as kind and smart, ``one of the good ones.'' After she graduated from Rutgers University, she served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal--the beginning of her career helping the world's most disadvantaged. From there, she went back to school to obtain master's degrees in public health and public administration and began her work improving the lives of the poorest as a global health professional with expertise in reproductive health, family planning, and HIV prevention and treatment. Ms. Datar spent over a decade working on critical development projects in Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia. As my colleagues know, Mali has been in turmoil for several years. It is the location of the world's most dangerous peacekeeping mission. Despite the presence of a United Nations peacekeeping mission and a French-led military operation, terrorists have continued to carry out periodic attacks on Malians and foreigners. Despite these dangers, Ms. Datar, who was serving as a senior director for field programs at Palladium, went to Mali as a U.S.…”