Clarence Clyde Ferguson, Jr.

Who was Clarence Clyde Ferguson, Jr.?

Clarence Clyde Ferguson Jr. was a professor of law and an United States Ambassador to Uganda.

Having experienced the horrors of World War II, as a diplomat he "labored tirelessly to safeguard and extend the fundamental freedoms" essential to world peace. He was the main proponent in many decisions implementing the social provisions of the U.N. Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, particularly in relation to apartheid, and more generally in relation to all forms of racial, religious, and cultural discrimination. Ferguson was the chief draftsman of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's statement on race in 1967 and is considered the "founding father" of affirmative action.

In 1969, he served as the U.S. ambassador-at-large and coordinator for civilian relief in the Nigerian civil war and negotiated the "Protocol on Relief to Nigeria Civilian Victims of the Civil War." He served as ambassador to Uganda in 1970 and as deputy assistant secretary of state for African affairs in 1973. From 1973 to 1975 he was the U.S. representative to the United Nations Economic and Social Council. He had an important role in the defense of human rights in Chile, influencing U.S’s actions against Pinochet’s crimes.