The
Trump administration revoked an International Women of Courage Award
for Finnish journalist Jessikka Aro after she criticized the president,
according to a new report from the Office of the Inspector General.The
report also says State Department officials gave a false explanation for
why it rescinded the award.The inspector general’s office obtained
meeting notes that showed senior U.S. officials saying Aro’s invitation
to the State Department’s International Women of Courage Awards should
be withdrawn. The acting director of the Office of Global Women’s Issues
noted that Aro had made social media posts criticizing Trump and the
“media could highlight the tweets and Facebook posts during the
ceremony.”Also Read: Trump Lashes Out at Fox News After Poll Shows Him
Down in Key StatesThe reasoning was that if the posts were highlighted,
it would embarrass the department, as well as first lady Melania Trump,
who was involved with the awards.The press highlighted the posts anyway:
Foreign Policy reported last year that Aro’s award had been canceled
due to her criticism.A State Department spokesperson said in an email to
Foreign Policy at the time that Aro was “incorrectly notified” that she
would be getting the award, calling it a mistake caused by “a lack of
coordination in communications with candidates and our embassies.”The IG
report found that Aro’s work on Russian propaganda had been selected,
but, as Foreign Policy reported in 2019, she was booted from the list
after her social media posts were discovered.Aro told Foreign Policy
that the withdrawal left her feeling “appalled and surprised.”“The
reality in which political decisions or presidential pettiness directs
top U.S. diplomats’ choices over whose human rights work is mentioned in
the public sphere and whose is not is a really scary reality,” she said
at the time.Read original story Trump Administration Revoked Award for
Female Journalist Who Criticized Him, Says Watchdog At TheWrap
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