Biden appoints Sara Minkara to US special advisor on international

President BidenJoe BidenBiden to meet House Dems before Europe trip: report 21 House Democrats call for removing IRS bank reporting proposal from spending bill Overnight Health Care — Presented by Altria — Vulnerable House Dems push drug pricing plan MORE announced on Thursday that he has appointed Sara Minkara to serve as U.S. special adviser on international disability rights.

The senior-level position, which is housed within the State Department, is meant to lead the U.S.’s strategy when it comes to promoting and protecting the rights of individuals with disabilities throughout the U.S. and in the department, according to a statement from the White House.

Minkara, who lost her eyesight when she was seven years old, is the founder and a board member of Empowerment Through Integration, a nonprofit organization she founded when she was still an undergraduate student.

The group, according to the White House, works to “disrupt the narrative surrounding disability through both empowering youth with disabilities individually and accelerating authentic inclusion globally.”

Former President ObamaBarack Hussein ObamaBiden’s finishing what Obama started with early learning Cotton tells Garland: ‘Thank God you’re not on the Supreme Court’ Budowsky: Vote for Terry McAuliffe: The midterms have begun MORE created the position of special advisor on international disability rights, elevating Judith Heumann to the post in 2010. The role was not filled during the Trump administration, according to CNN.

The White House said Minkara’s appointment to the State Department post is “more necessary than ever,” pointing to COVID-19, climate change and “political unrest disproportionately impact persons with disabilities.”

“Discrimination against persons with disabilities hinders economic development, limits democracy, and erodes societies. With Sara’s leadership, the United States can play an important role in meeting these challenges and mitigating their harmful impacts on persons with disabilities globally,” the White House added.

Minkara is a graduate of Wellesley College and the Harvard Kennedy School. She previously advised a number of academic, government and policy groups on matters relating to disability, gender, interpersonal dynamics, inclusion and entrepreneurship, including the United Nations and  the Harvard Kennedy School’s Executive Education program, according to the White House.

Minkara, in an interview with CNN, emphasized the importance of thinking about the people with disabilities, which is one-seventh of the world population.

“One-seventh of our world’s population — 1 billion people — are people with disabilities. And if we are not thinking about that community when we’re talking about foreign policy and policy in general, that means we’re really ignoring 1/7th of our world population,” Minkara said.

She told the network that she is optimistic that her entrepreneurial experience will give her an opportunity to…