Kacie Candela
- Trial Attorney, Emplyoment Litigation Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice
New York
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Articles by Kacie Candela
When NY Worker Free Speech Rights And COVID-19 Collide
By Alexandra Berke, Kacie Candela and Margaret Lee Law360 is providing free access to its coronavirus coverage to make sure all members of the legal community have accurate information in this time of uncertainty and change. Use the form below to sign up for any of our daily newsletters. Signing up for any of our section newsletters will opt you in to the daily Coronavirus briefing.
China's UN Playground & Talking Gender With the UN's Rosemary DiCarlo: Our Latest Episode
GEOPOLITICS Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Under Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs, in her office in the Secretariat building, New York, December 2019. DiCarlo, who is from Rhode Island in the United States, is the first person to lead the new department. JOE PENNEY This year was a big one for China, and 2020 is likely to be much the same — if not more intense, given the range of issues involving the United States and far beyond.
Russia in Africa and Frank Talk on Feminist Foreign Policies: Our Latest Podcast Episode
GEOPOLITICS One of the most popular activities at the Russian-African summit in Sochi in late October was trying out the virtual reality booth with Russian rifles. President Putin wants investments and closer friendships in Africa, while the United States takes a back seat. JOE PENNEY African summits may be in vogue worldwide, and Russia’s recent summit in Sochi in late October was no exception.
Russia, Iran, the US and Visas: The Cold War Heats Up at the UN, a Podcast Explains
Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s top diplomat to the UN, briefing the media, Oct. 16, 2019. Russia and Iran have been vigorously protesting US visa denials to dozens of their diplomats. Our new podcast episode explains their strategy.
The Oscars of International Politics: A #UNGA74 Recap
António Guterres, the UN secretary-general, and Angela Merkel, the chancellor of Germany, at the VIP luncheon during the annual UN General Assembly opening session, Sept. 24, 2019. It was Merkel’s first time to the UNGA, as it is called, in four years and may be her last. EUROPANEWSWIRE/UNCA POOL This year’s opening session of the United Nations General Assembly stood out for revealing the stark divide now defining international relations: the split between globalists and patriots.
Highlights of the UN General Assembly's Opening Session: A Podcast on What to Expect
Secretary-General António Guterres giving a toast at the annual heads of state luncheon during the opening session of the UN General Assembly, Sept. 25, 2018. This year, the session will include conferences on climate change, universal health care and the Sustainable Development Goals. And, of course, there will be the parade of speeches by global leaders. LI MUZI/UNCA POOL PHOTO The 74th session of the United Nations General Assembly opened on Tuesday, Sept.
The UN Headquarters Says Adiós to Single-Use Plastic
At an entrance to the UN headquarters in New York, Indonesian diplomats passing one of the many signs, including some sterner than others, announcing the ban on single-use plastic in the UN dining areas. DULCIE LEIMBACH People who regularly work or visit the United Nations headquarters in New York have surely noticed something new in the cafeteria this summer: no more single-use plastic, not even for takeout.
Who Is Kelly Knight Craft? A Podcast to Get to Know the New US Ambassador to the UN
Stéphanie Fillion and Kacie Candela Stéphanie Fillion is a New York-based reporter specializing in foreign affairs and human rights. She has a master's degree in journalism, politics and global affairs from Columbia University and a B.A. in political science from McGill University. Fillion was awarded a European Union in Canada Young Journalists fellowship in 2015 and was an editorial fellow for La Stampa in 2017.
Pulling Back the Curtain on the US Mission to the UN
Vice President Pence suddenly showed up at the UN on April 10, 2019, to demand that the Security Council strip the current Venezuelan ambassador’s UN credentials. That has not happened. The US mission to the UN lacks a permanent representative amid an outflow of a range of personnel.
For Journalists Seeking Female Experts on Global Affairs, Here's a New Source
Venezuelans in Florida “strike for democracy,” as they called their demonstration for their home country, Feb. 2, 2019, above. A new initiative by a group of female Nobel laureates offers a database of female experts for journalists to interview for reporting on international conflicts.
Authorities Find More Ways to Silence Women Human-Rights Experts
Protests against a new overtime law in Hungary, Dec. 12, 2018, Budapest. Women who defend human rights are subjected more than ever before to a range of threats, from online trolling to torture, a new Swedish report finds. More than two decades have passed since the United Nations General Assembly approved the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, which encourages countries to protect people who fight for human rights around the world.
Where Is the Worst Place for a Child to Be Born?
Children in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa have the highest rates of child deaths in the world, a new Unicef report documents, yet much progress has been made globally to reduce child mortality since 1990. Here, a boy in Dhaka, Bangladesh. FRANCISCO MAGALLON By one measure — the chances of surviving to young adulthood — sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia have the highest rates of child deaths at every stage of childhood.
A UN Ensemble Whose Music Radiates Peace
The UN Chamber Music Society, one of many clubs UN staffers can join. Music, the Society says, is the universal language of peace. The group performs publicly, including recently at Carnegie Hall. The quiet work of diplomacy at the United Nations headquarters often makes for a dry atmosphere. But after sundown, it’s a whole different scene, thanks to a robust after-work culture of clubs — much as you would find at an American high school — under the umbrella of the UN Staff Recreation Council.
In a First, Trump Chairs the UN Security Council, but Nothing Happened
Donald Trump led his first-ever UN Security Council debate, on nonproliferation, on Sept. 26, 2018. In a surprisingly subdued but stern meeting attended by many heads of state representing the Council’s members, they spoke on a range of issues, from the use of chemical weapons to the Iran nuclear deal. Out of the blue, Trump warned China not to interfere with US midterm elections and to stay out of future US voting.
John Ashe, Ex-UN Diplomat Facing Criminal Charges, Goes Begging
A legal defense fund has been set up for John Ashe, a former president of the United Nations General Assembly, who has been accused by the United States government in a million-dollar tax fraud case. The fund is to help Ashe and his wife, Anilla Cherian, to fight a “complicated and unprecedented tax-related criminal case in the United States” requiring “enormous financial resources,” according to a letter sent by a friend of the couple to other parties.
At a Hotel Run by Refugees in Vienna, a Breath of Sanity
VIENNA — Not far from the palatial city center that symbolizes so much of old and modern Vienna, the Magdas Hotel presents an altogether different scene for visitors to this capital. At Magdas — which opened this year and means, in German, “Like that!” — the hotel is managed mostly by refugees: 20 people from a total of 16 countries speaking up to 27 languages: a micro United Nations.
Two Health Alerts: Resurgent Polio and Antibiotic Resistance
Recent research reports published by The Lancet could make a lot of people rethink the assumption that once a disease has been declared eradicated, that’s it. Done. A recent resurge in cases of polio in several countries and concern in Europe that antibiotic resistance is being bought there by refugees and migrants are becoming global health issues. The reasons for how these possible setbacks are happening in these two situations differ.
Kofi Annan’s Path to Humanitarian Intervention
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who died on Aug. 18, in Switzerland, was deeply committed to peace and the UN Charter, as well as human rights and humanitarian action. He led a debate about harmonizing these principles and rebalancing the sovereignty of countries with the rights of people within them. During his 10 years as secretary-general, which began in 1997, he established what he called a “new norm on humanitarian intervention,” redefining traditional notions of sovereignty.
Can Jane Holl Lute, a New UN Envoy, Work a Miracle on Cyprus?
The newest person to venture into kick-starting talks between the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots on the long-divided island of Cyprus in the Mediterranean is Jane Holl Lute. She is an American with a military and national-security background who has been assigned the task by the United Nations secretary-general, António Guterres. Since the two sides on Cyprus do not talk to each other, the only avenue to peace is through the UN.
The Devastating Decline of Human-Rights Justice Across the World
The soul of the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights is being destroyed with the disappearance of human-rights justice in the world. Everyone should be concerned if not frightened. The appointment of Michelle Bachelet of Chile as UN high commissioner for human rights, who has personally experienced injustice, offers hope that her voice will be heard in support of human-rights norms, in letter and in spirit.
Kofi Annan: The Back Story
Frederic Eckhard, the United Nations spokesman for eight and a half of Kofi Annans 10 years as secretary-general, was certainly well placed to write a tell-all account of that action-packed era. But readers of Eckhard’s new book, “Kofi Annan: A Spokesperson’s Memoir,” get that and something more. Along with the insider accounts, there’s the portrait that emerges of Eckhard himself, an admirable spokesman who helped Annan guide the UN through an extraordinarily productive period.
Kofi Annan, 80, a Popular UN Secretary-General From Africa, Is Dead
Kofi Annan, the seventh and probably the most popular and widely respected secretary-general the United Nations has ever known, died unexpectedly in Bern, Switzerland, early on Saturday morning, Aug. 18. His death followed what initial reports described only as a short illness. He led the UN for two terms, from 1997 through 2006, winning the Nobel Peace Prize for himself and the organization in 2001.
Women in Peacekeeping: A Status Report
Female participation in U.N. peacekeeping remains low, especially in military and combat roles. But more women are taking up civilian roles in peace operations, writes journalist Kacie Candela for PassBlue. Women have historically been underrepresented across the United Nations system, but notably in peacekeeping, one of the most highly visible activities of the world body.
The Heart of Ethnic Cleansing Has Moved to India
Harsh Mander had barely arrived in the remote northeastern Indian state of Assam when he was drawn into a humanitarian horror story years in the making. It was about to get exponentially worse. “The people of Assam are sitting atop a smoldering volcano, one that threatens to erupt into catastrophic suffering and injustice,” he wrote after a trip to the state in January as the Indian National Human Rights Commission’s special monitor for minorities.
The US and Iran: Playing With Fire
With the recent reimposition of its sanctions against Iran, the United States is clearly violating its obligations under the United Nations resolution that endorsed the Iran nuclear agreement. While the Security Council has taken note and Iran has formally responded, urging the UN “to keep the United States accountable,” no party to the agreement has requested an official meeting in the Council to discuss US actions — sidestepping an opportunity for the other 14 member nations to weigh in.
Britain’s Main Priority in the UN Security Council in August: Burma
Welcome to our new column, Security Council Presidency, providing insight into the United Nations Security Council member sitting in the rotating seat of the president every month. The column began in July, when Sweden was president, led by the country’s UN ambassador, Olof Skoog. For August, we profile Karen Pierce, Britain’s ambassador to the UN, through an interview with her and her press office in New York.
Rohingya Refugees Look to Washington and Find a Vacuum
This August marks a year since a military crackdown forced at least 700,000 Rohingya to flee Myanmar for Bangladesh, joining hundreds of thousands of Rohingya who had already taken refuge there, totaling 1.1 million people encamped in Cox’s Bazar, according to a Bangladesh count done this July. But you would never know from the Trump White House about this enormous influx of people escaping from Myanmar to Bangladesh, as President Trump remains mute on the subject.
Backing Up Women With Facts and Figures
In 2001, a pair of academics at Brigham Young University in Utah aimed to identify data linking the status of women to the security and behavior of countries. Seventeen years later, what began as a single article has evolved into a vital, comprehensive global database, offering insights into women’s lives in 176 countries.
Projecting Future Populations Requires Tracking the Past
In politics it is often said: “While the future is known, it’s the past that keeps changing.” In demography, it’s exactly the opposite: while the past is known, it’s the future that keeps changing. That is simply because population’s fundamental building blocks — births, deaths and migrations — are not fixed but vary over time and place.
Why Israel Dropped Out of the UN Security Council Race: Not Enough Votes
From the start, it was a closely watched contest pitting Germany, Belgium and Israel against one another for their regional bloc’s two seats in the next term on the United Nations Security Council. Israel has never held a seat on the Council, and as it celebrates its 70-year membership in the UN in 2018, the country was aiming high for the June 8 election. But it was never going to be a shoo-in for Israel.
To Help the World Sleep Better, Salvage the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
If United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo follows through with his threat to impose “the strongest sanctions in history” on Iran, the United States should be prepared for Iran to retaliate by withdrawing from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
Thank You, United Nations, for Helping Victims of Nazi Experiments
As World War II ended and the horrors of the Holocaust unfolded before a stunned humanity, the victims, their families and people of good will sought to construct a new world order of justice grounded in recognition of inalienable human rights. Prof. Hersch Lauterpacht made the case for an International Bill of Rights, the first part of which was adopted as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Dec. 10, 1948.
In Nunavut, Poor Health Care Shortens Indigenous People’s Lives
Canada’s national health system, the envy of many people in other countries, including in the United States, is being more scrutinized from Canadians as reports reveal serious health-service gaps in the territory of Nunavut, a self-governing province populated by mostly Inuit people.
Nikki Haley’s Twists and Turns, Leading Down a Path to Nowhere
Nikki Haley is the most popular member of Donald Trump’s national security team, according to a recent Quinnipiac University poll, which found that 63 percent of voters approve of the job she is doing as United States ambassador to the United Nations. Just 17 percent disapprove.
In Europe and the US, Will Young People Prolong Populism’s Appeal?
In one of several recent books looking for the meaning of populism’s surge in the 21st century, not only in the United States and Europe but also well beyond Western borders, the author Yascha Mounk, a German-born scholar at Harvard, offers the startling assumption that populism as a solution to political and economic problems is attracting new generations of voters.
A New Peace-Building Podcast Series Delves Into East Africa’s Complexities
A new series called “Peacebuilders,” offering a weekly podcast of interviews with a diverse array of African and other professionals on vital issues they confront in their work in East Africa, has been introduced by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. The nine-part series debuted on May 1, with the first one focused on the evolving role of ethnicity in the region and how it plays out in conflict and post-conflict settings.
Why Syria Will Need a UN Peacekeeping Force (Called Unshams)
After seven years of horrific fighting, it appears that the Syrian civil war is inching toward a conclusion. In the wake of recent alleged chemical attacks unleashed in Eastern Ghouta, Bashar al-Assad’s regime is squeezing remaining rebel forces, largely herding them — and thousands of civilians — into the northwest in Idlib Province, where an uncertain fate awaits.
Prisoners’ Human Rights: A Seriously Forgotten Problem in Britain?
NOTTINGHAM, England — Prisoner rights are not a popular topic either in the hallowed halls of the British Parliament or in the public domain in Britain. Aside from the standard “tough on crime” approach that most governments adopt as a go-to populist policy, there is little if any attention paid to people in our population who languish behind bars and the process by which they got there.
Art and Lunch, a Felicitous Blend at Rose Hill
Some people at the United Nations remain in mourning since Matisse shut down in February after serving as the corner cantine to hungry diplomats and their friends and neighbors for nearly nine years. If you are still feeling a void in your lunchtime routine, there’s good news: a sister restaurant called Rose Hill opened recently less than a mile southwest of UN headquarters, in a beautiful 1905 Beaux-Arts building on East 32nd Street.
Can the UN Finally Get Serious About Inefficiencies in Its Development System?
BONN, Germany — Member states of the United Nations are now negotiating reform proposals for the world body’s development system. In the latest draft resolution, they welcome the secretary-general’s proposal for “advancing common business operations” and “request” for their “implementation,” in line with earlier decisions by the General Assembly (a previous draft requested “full implementation”).
Tunisian Women Feel Their Rights Eroding
TUNIS — Tunisia has possessed the rare reputation of being progressive in gender equality in the Middle East-North African region. Yet with the rise of an Islamist political party in Tunisia after its relatively placid revolution in 2011, the question is, how have women fared in the post-Arab spring landscape? In Tunis, the cosmopolitan capital, the streets along the Mediterranean Sea are lined with lovely French colonial buildings.
Setting an Example: Kenyans’ Innovations in UN Peacekeeping
NAIROBI — With the budget cuts to peace operations implemented last year and the prospect of even more reduction in resources, debates about United Nations peacekeeping effectiveness have intensified. One of the areas sorely in need of innovation is peacekeeping training and, more generally, the preparation of troops, police officers and civilians for peace operations.
South Africa’s Light on Human Rights Dims Again at the UN
When the monthlong winter session of the United Nations Human Rights Council opened at the end of February, expectations were high that progress would be made on reforms demanded by the United States and supported by many other nations, although not in as threatening terms as those of Nikki Haley, the Trump administration’s ambassador to the UN. In the end, nothing changed, as a majority of developing nations and Muslim governments took every opportunity they could to oppose Council reforms.
Speaking Loudly Even While Wielding the Big Stick
Whatever else came out of the latest American-led strikes on Syrian chemical weapon sites, it put on display rare signs of diplomatic skill on the part of the Trump administration, even if those signs first surfaced at the Pentagon rather than at the White House, the United Nations or Washington’s rudderless Department of State.
Confronting Possible Gas Attacks in Syria, the UN Security Council Succumbs to Chaos
In a week of reversals, semireversals and blatant backtracking by some of the most powerful countries on earth, diplomacy showed its head-spinning underside in the United Nations Security Council, as three Western allies — Britain, France and the United States — conveyed their outrage against Russia for its perceived role in allowing the Syrian government to unleash fatal chemical weapons on its own people. Russia reacted in kind against the Westerners, spreading invective all around.
Fixing Iran the European Way, Using Sanctions for Peace
Preventing the United States from collapsing the Iran nuclear deal may be impossible, but European and other global leaders are still ensuring that the Trump team knows the political costs that it will incur if it sticks to that goal.
Europe to Trump: We Are Not Giving Up on the Iran Nuclear Deal
While the Trump administration stocks up on Iran hawks like John Bolton, the new national security adviser, and Mike Pompeo as secretary of state, an impending collapse of the Iran nuclear deal could rapidly turn into a new global reality: further isolation of the United States, Saudi Arabia and Israel as the rest of the world works on converting Iran into a positive force in the Middle East. But will these steep political costs to the US cause the Trump team to rethink its course?
Trump’s Opposition to the Iran Nuclear Deal: A Zero-Sum Game?
President Donald Trump’s mid-May deadline for renegotiating the terms of the nuclear arms deal with Iran is rapidly approaching.
Women Descend on the UN, Riding on the Heels of #TimesUp
As women across the world battle systemic harassment and worse abuses for merely being female, the United Nations has opened its annual gathering of women in one of its biggest conferences of the year. This time, the 12-day meeting focuses on the status of rural women, but since it follows closely on the heels of the #MeToo movement and the #TimesUp and #TimeIsNow momentum, that will not be the only subject to come up.
Why Israel Dropped Out of the Security Council Race: Not Enough Votes
UNITED NATIONS, May 29 2018 (IPS) - From the start, it was a closely watched contest pitting Germany, Belgium and Israel against one another for their regional bloc’s two seats in the next term on the United Nations Security Council. Israel has never held a seat on the Council, and as it celebrates its 70-year membership in the UN in 2018, the country was aiming high for the June 8 election. But it was never going to be a shoo-in for Israel.
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