Principal Officer Susan A. Wilson, US Consulate General, Edinburgh -

As part of our programme of liaising with our local high schools, senior pupils and teachers from the Modern Studies departments were invited to attend tonight’s meeting of the Rotary Club of Motherwell and Wishaw, and Dalziel, Our Lady’s and Taylor High Schools accepted to listen to, and ask questions of, our guest speaker, Susan A Wilson, Principal Officer (official in charge) of the U.S. Consulate General in Edinburgh.

A native of Richmond, Virginia, Susan is married to Michael Leath, and they have two children. She holds a B.A. in Medieval Studies from Georgetown University and an M.A. in medieval history from Virginia Commonwealth University. Prior to joining the State Department, Susan was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Jizzak, Uzbekistan, and also taught as an adjunct History instructor at Germanna Community College in Fredericksburg, Virginia.

Susan has had a varied diplomatic career, serving as Assistant Public Affairs Officer in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and as Vice Consul in Kingston, Jamaica. Immediately prior to her posting to Edinburgh, she was the Public Affairs Officer at the U.S. Consulate in Adana, Turkey, where her two main priorities were encouraging the internal peace process in Turkey’s volatile south-eastern region, and working to alleviate spill over effects from the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Syria.

Susan spoke, at length, about the function and responsibilities of the Consulate General, from looking after the interests of American citizens visiting Scotland, to building commercial and cultural links between Scotland and the U.S.A.

She informed us that the darkest days of the Consulate’s history took place just before Christmas in 1988, when a jumbo jet exploded over Lockerbie. The Consulate’s American officials, and local staff, raced to the scene and worked there, along with hundreds of Scots, for months to assist and comfort the victims’ grieving families.

In 1995, the Consulate was scheduled for closure after deep cuts were made to the U.S. State Department’s budget. Given the close links between Scotland and the emerging U.S.A., immediately following the War of Independence, the outpouring of support from Americans and Scots alike surprised many and former Presidents George Bush and Jimmy Carter joined the campaign. Just days before it was due to close, the Consulate won a reprieve.

Susan said that President Obama had advised all embassy and consular staff to listen to the people in whose countries they were stationed. In the UK the biggest complaint from Brits going to the USA was that they felt that they were being treated as criminals until they had cleared US Immigration. The US listened and travel and entry to America in now easier. Susan then responded to a huge number of questions put to her and President James Gibbons had to call a halt as Susan had to travel back through to Edinburgh.