Sara E. Lister

Sara Elisabeth Lister (born May 10, 1940) Lister gained national attention in November 1997 when she referred to members of the United States Marine Corps as "extremists" during a discussion at an academic conference. She was ultimately forced to resign early as Assistant Secretary of the Army because of the controversy over her remarks.

Biography

Sara E. Lister was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota and raised in Washington, D.C. and New York City, studying at Sidwell Friends School and receiving her high school diploma from The Hewitt School in 1957. She was educated at Radcliffe College (A.B., 1961), George Washington University (M.A., 1966 and J.D., 1974), and Yale University (incomplete PhD studies). This group issued a report—the so-called "Lister Report"—that recommended that "the Army should eliminate use of mental categories and should revise AFQT cut scores based on a new analytical framework ... each military service should set scores at the optimum levels to achieve its own accession goals." While serving in this position, Lister was instrumental in the development of policies that opened more Army jobs to women in 1994, and played a key role in the investigations of sexual misconduct and discrimination in the service. Of Lister, retired Brig. Gen. Evelyn "Pat" Foote said, "I think she is one of the greatest soldiers the Army has ever had."

On October 26, 1997, Lister participated in a seminar in Baltimore addressing the relationship between civilian and military segments of society. During that seminar, Lister made the following comments during a discussion of scholarly papers on the topic:

I think the Army is much more connected to society than the Marines. The Marines are extremists. Whenever you have extremists, you have some risks of total disconnection with society. And that's a little dangerous. Nevertheless, leaders of the U.S. Marine Corps did not take kindly to being labeled "extremists" and spoke out against Lister. On November 13, 1997, the United States House of Representatives passed a concurrent resolution condemning Lister's remarks, stating that her characterization of the Marine Corps as "extremists" "denigrates 222 years of sacrifice and dedication to the Nation by the Marine Corps and dishonors the hundreds of thousands of Marines whose blood has been shed in the name of freedom"; and calling for Lister's resignation. Newt Gingrich, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives sent a letter to President Clinton in which he called Lister's remarks "completely out of order" and insulting to all military personnel. Gingrich wrote: "Nothing less than her dismissal and a full apology on your part to America's sons and daughters in uniform will suffice to repair this breach." Others speculated that she was an "obvious choice" to succeed Togo West as Secretary of the Army, a concern for opponents of greater military service opportunities for women.

Personal

Lister is the daughter of Republican U.S. Senator Joseph H. Ball and Elisabeth Josephine (Robbins) Ball. She had a brother and a sister.

She married U.S. Air Force officer Charles Ellis Lister on June 23, 1961 in New York City. They have two daughters.