February 9, 1996
Contact: Jean Moore, 615-322-2706 or Selina Shah, 615-421-6635
Margaret Thatcher to speak at Vanderbilt April 17
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
will be the keynote speaker for the 1996 IMPACT Symposium, according to
Chair Greg Young.
Britain's first woman prime minister and the nation's longest-serving prime
minister of the 20th century, Thatcher will speak Wednesday, April 17, at
8 p.m. in Memorial Gymnasium. Tickets for the event are expected to go on
sale in March.
The theme for the annual student-organized symposium is "Instability
in Bosnia and Beyond: The International Response?" Young says his committee
chose to focus on the crisis in the international arena before learning
of Thatcher's availability.
"We realized she could provide an unparalleled perspective on Bosnia
and other similar situations around the world," he said. "In addition
to the European point of view, we also have invited a representative of
the Clinton administration to provide an American perspective."
The IMPACT Symposium is traditionally held in February but was postponed
to accommodate Thatcher's availability, said Young. Additional speakers
for this year's series are expected to be announced at a later date.
As a student at Somerville College, Oxford, Thatcher was president of the
Oxford University Conservative Association. After graduating with a degree
in chemistry, Thatcher worked as an industrial chemist while studying law.
In 1954, she began practicing law, specializing in tax issues.
The daughter of a grocer who was active in local politics as borough councillor,
alderman and mayor, Thatcher's political career was launched with her election
to the House of Commons in 1959. She was appointed to Edward Heath's Shadow
Cabinet in 1967, and she served as secretary of state for education and
science from 1970 to 1974. The following year, Thatcher successfully challenged
Heath for party leadership and became the first woman to lead a major British
party.
Thatcher was appointed prime minister, first lord of the treasury and minister
for the civil service in 1979, following the success of the Conservative
Party in the general elections. She retained the position through contested
elections in 1983 and 1987.
During her tenure as prime minister, Thatcher promoted a free- enterprise
economy; implemented tight monetary policies to control inflation, lower
taxes and reduce government spending; advocated privatization of state-owned
companies and public housing; and introduced legislation to curb the monopoly
powers of trade unions and make their leadership more accountable to their
members.
In addition to her domestic achievements, Thatcher earned a reputation as
an international statesman. A staunch supporter of the Northern Atlantic
Alliance, she maintained close relationships with U.S. Presidents Ronald
Reagan and George Bush. In 1982, when Argentina invaded the Faulkland Islands,
Thatcher dispatched troops to reclaim the islands. And she traveled extensively
throughout the Middle East and Asia in an effort to improve Britain's relations
in those regions.
After her resignation in 1990, Thatcher was awarded the Order of Merit by
Her Majesty the Queen. In 1992 she was elevated to the House of Lords to
become Baroness Thatcher of Kesteven, and in 1995 she was made a member
of the Most Noble Order of the Garter.
Thatcher's first volume of memoirs, "The Downing Street Years,"
was published in 1993 by Harper-Collins. Her most recent book, "The
Pass to Power," was published last summer.
Since its inception more than three decades ago, IMPACT has enjoyed a tradition
of presenting speakers on topics of national interest. Previous speakers
in the forum include the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Stokely Carmichael,
Robert Kennedy, Gary Hart, Jack Kemp, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, Jeane Kirkpatrick
and Zbigniew Brezeinski, as well as Presidents Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter
and George Bush. Last year's program featured former Vice President Dan
Quayle and former New York Governor Mario Cuomo.
-VU-
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