Barbara Spyridon Pope (born November 10, 1951) was

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) The Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) (abbreviated as ASN M&RA) is a civilian office in the United States Department of the Navy. The Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) reports to the Under ...

from 1989 to 1993. She came to prominence during the

Tailhook scandal The Tailhook scandal was a military scandal in which United States Navy and U.S. Marine Corps aviation officers were alleged to have sexually assaulted up to 83 women and seven men, or otherwise engaged in "improper and indecent" conduct at t ...

for her opposition to the initial investigation conducted by

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

Duvall M. Williams, Jr., which she felt was a

whitewash Whitewash, or calcimine, kalsomine, calsomine, or lime paint is a type of paint made from slaked lime ( calcium hydroxide, Ca(OH)2) or chalk calcium carbonate, (CaCO3), sometimes known as "whiting". Various other additives are sometimes used ...

Biography

Barbara Lee Spyridon was born in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

on November 10, 1951. She attended

Wesleyan College Wesleyan College is a private, liberal arts women's college in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1836, Wesleyan was the first college in the world chartered to grant degrees to women. History The school was chartered on December 23, 1836, as the Geo ...

1969-71 and

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

1971-73, graduating with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in psychology in May 1973. She attended

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...

1978-80, and worked as an

administrative assistant A person responsible for providing various kinds of administrative assistance is called an administrative assistant (admin assistant) or sometimes an administrative support specialist. In most instances it is identical to the modern iteration of t ...

in the

Small Business Administration The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and stren ...

's Office of

General Counsel A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department. In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...

1979-80. She was an

employee development Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any oth ...

specialist in the Small Business Administration's Office of Personnel 1980-82, and then served as Special Assistant to the

Administrator of the Small Business Administration The administrator of the Small Business Administration is the head of the Small Business Administration of the United States Government. President Barack Obama announced in January 2012 that he would elevate the SBA administrator into the Cabine ...

1982-86. In 1986, Pope became Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense (Family Support, Education, and Safety) in the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...

. On August 19, 1989,

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

George H. W. Bush George Herbert Walker BushSince around 2000, he has been usually called George H. W. Bush, Bush Senior, Bush 41 or Bush the Elder to distinguish him from his eldest son, George W. Bush, who served as the 43rd president from 2001 to 2009; pr ...

nominated Pope as

, and, after

ratification Ratification is a principal's approval of an act of its agent that lacked the authority to bind the principal legally. Ratification defines the international act in which a state indicates its consent to be bound to a treaty if the parties inten ...

by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

, Pope served as Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) from November 1989 until January 1993. When the

broke in 1991, Pope became concerned that the

United States Department of the Navy The United States Department of the Navy (DoN) is one of the three military departments within the Department of Defense of the United States of America. It was established by an Act of Congress on 30 April 1798, at the urging of Secretary o ...

was not conducting a proper investigation into allegations that

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

personnel had

sexually harassed Sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promises of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment includes a range of actions fro ...

women at the 1991 meeting of the

Tailhook Association The Tailhook Association is a U.S.-based non-profit fraternal organization supporting the interests of sea-based aviation, with emphasis on aircraft carriers. The word tailhook refers to the hook underneath the tail of the aircraft that catches the ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

. She was particularly concerned because the officer heading the investigation,

Duvall M. Williams, Jr., head of the

Naval Investigative Service The United States Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) is the primary law enforcement agency of the U.S. Department of the Navy. Its primary function is to investigate criminal activities involving the Navy and Marine Corps, though it ...

, made

sexist Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but it primarily affects women and girls.There is a clear and broad consensus among academic scholars in multiple fields that sexism refers primaril ...

remarks in Pope's presence, most notably a comment that he believed that "a lot of female Navy pilots are

go-go dancers Go-go dancers are dancers who are employed to entertain crowds at nightclubs or other venues where music is played. Go-go dancing originated in the early 1960s at the French bar Whisky a Gogo located in Juan-les-Pins. The bar's name was taken ...

topless dancer Toplessness refers to the state in which a woman's breasts, including her areolas and nipples, are exposed, especially in a public place or in a visual medium. The male equivalent is barechestedness, also commonly called shirtlessness. Expose ...

s or hookers". When Admiral Williams issued his final report, finding that no senior Navy officials bore responsibility for what occurred in Las Vegas, Pope went to

United States Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States D ...

Henry L. Garrett III Henry Lawrence Garrett III (born June 24, 1939) served as the 68th Secretary of the Navy from May 15, 1989, to June 26, 1992, in the administration of George H. W. Bush. Before leading the Department of the Navy, he served as General Counsel of th ...

and told him that she would resign if the United States Department of the Navy did not "do another report and look at what we needed to do about accountability and responsibility and the larger issues at hand." Garrett agreed with Pope, and a further investigation was conducted, headed by Derek J. Vander Schaaf, the

Inspector General An inspector general is an investigative official in a civil or military organization. The plural of the term is "inspectors general". Australia The Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security (Australia) (IGIS) is an independent statutory off ...

of the

, that ultimately resulted in the resignation of Admiral Williams, and a second admiral, Rear Adm.

John E. Gordon John Edward "Ted" Gordon (April 25, 1941 - January 22, 2023) was a retired United States Navy rear admiral who served as Judge Advocate General of the Navy from 1990 until 1992. Naval career Raised in Kingston, Pennsylvania, Gordon was educated ...

, for their failure to conduct a thorough investigation into the Tailhook allegations. In the wake of Vander Schaaf's report, the Naval Investigative Service was reorganized as the

Naval Criminal Investigative Service The United States Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) is the primary law enforcement agency of the U.S. Department of the Navy. Its primary function is to investigate criminal activities involving the Navy and Marine Corps, though its ...

. In the wake of the Tailhook scandal, Pope chaired an ad hoc committee to study the role of women in the military. In the course of this study, she said that "As we looked at assimilation and integration of women, combat exclusions and how we do business, it was clear women had been made to feel like second-class citizens." This committee played a role in

United States Secretary of Defense The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense, the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces, and is a high ranking member of the federal cabinet. DoDD 5100.1: Enclosure 2: a The s ...

Les Aspin Leslie Aspin Jr. (July 21, 1938 – May 21, 1995) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district from 1971 to 1993 and as the 18th United States Secretary of Defens ...

's 1993 order ending the ban against female combat pilots and his decision to ask the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

to allow women to serve on American navy ships. Pope later became Assistant Secretary of State for Civil Rights under

United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...

. Powell tasked Pope with moving to combat

discrimination Discrimination is the act of making unjustified distinctions between people based on the groups, classes, or other categories to which they belong or are perceived to belong. People may be discriminated on the basis of race, gender, age, relig ...

in the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

. Her husband is James Selkirk "Jay" Pope, and together, they have two children, Jim and Kacey. Kacey is

Autistic The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

. Upon leaving government service, Pope joined Sunrise Senior Living as Director of

Special Needs In clinical diagnostic and functional development, special needs (or additional needs) refers to individuals who require assistance for disabilities that may be medical, mental, or psychological. Guidelines for clinical diagnosis are given in ...

Assisted Living An assisted living residence or assisted living facility (ALF) is a housing facility for people with disabilities or for adults who cannot or who choose not to live independently. The term is popular in the United States, but the setting is s ...

and in this capacity oversees Sunrise Senior Living's expansion into creating facilities for assisted living for special needs individuals over the age of 21.

Cultural references

In the 1995

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

''She Stood Alone: The Tailhook Scandal'', Pope was played by actress

Bess Armstrong Elizabeth Key "Bess" Armstrong (born December 11, 1953) is an American film, stage and television actress. She is best known for her roles in films '' The Four Seasons'' (1981), '' High Road to China'' (1983), ''Jaws 3-D'' (1983), and ''Nothing i ...

.Fancast page on ''She Stood Alone: The Tailhook Scandal''
/ref>

References

Press Release on occasion of President Bush's Nomination of Pope in 1989
* Judy Mann, "The Woman Who Said No to the Navy", ''Washington Post'', Feb. 5, 1993 {{DEFAULTSORT:Pope, Barbara S. 1951 births Living people People from Pittsburgh Wesleyan College alumni Vanderbilt University alumni George Washington University alumni United States Assistant Secretaries of the Navy George H. W. Bush administration personnel Female United States Navy civilians United States Assistant Secretaries of State