McCain Institute Assistant Director of Democracy Programs Pedro Pizano sat down with the “American Mother” (the title of her recent book) of James Foley, brutally beheaded by ISIS in a public execution in 2014. His mother, Diane Foley, turned “tragedy into purpose,” as noted by the National Security Advisor in a great profile of Diane Foley, like few others, and altered—even catalyzed—the course of the modern hostage recovery and deterrence enterprise in the United States and around the world.
Diane Foley highlighted the U.S. hostage enterprise and covered the successes and challenges since its establishment in 2015 by PPD-30 and subsequently codified by the Robert Levinson Act in 2020. She established the James W Foley Legacy Foundation which advocates « for the freedom of innocent US nationals held captive abroad and promotes journalist safety. »
The conversation also focuses on American Mother, Diane Foley’s latest book which « is the heart-rending story of a mother who, in the course of confronting her son’s killer, gets to the elemental heart of violence and forgiveness. »
Seven years later after her son’s murder, « Diane gets the chance to spend three days with the murderer of her son in a Virginia courthouse, inspiring her to tell her life story. What unfolds is one of the most compelling narratives in recent literary history, channelled into searing reality by National Book Award-winner Colum McCann, who brings us on a journey of strength, resilience and radical empathy. »
The McCain Institute has held multiple events in partnership with the Foley Foundation, including at the U.S. State Department with Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who was the second Kissinger Fellow at the McCain institute. Learn more about those events and watch them here.
The interview was recorded in Washington, D.C., and New York City, with the expert aid and editing skills of the McCain Institute’s Senior Program Coordinator of the Democracy Programs Luke Englebert, and staffing by our Junior Fellow Georgia Bernbaum.