Interview with Mark Silverman, May 30, 2022

Interview Summary

Mark Silverman served as a PCV in TEFL program in Kabul Afghanistan from 1973-4. After military service, corporate work and yearlong travel, he and his girlfriend married and joined the Peace Corps. He discusses Afghan culture, living and health conditions at the time, constraints on friendships with Afghans because of the culture, the high attrition of PCVs, and limited support provided by Peace Corps staff. He talks about poor management at the Public Health Institute where he taught. He discusses Soviet influence in Afghanistan in the 1970’s, the 1973 bloodless coup and its impact on his Peace Corps experience, and the long-term impact of the bloody April 1978 coup, which he experienced serving with USAID. He concludes with observations about Peace Corps’ and US development assistance’s impact in Afghanistan, Peace Corps’ impact on his career and marriage, and the state of Afghanistan today.

Interview Keyword

Peace Corps (US) Afghanistan (Country of Service) Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) (Peace Corps program) 1973-4 (years of service) Afghan coups and the 1979 murder of the US Ambassador (historical context) Peace Corps (U.S.)—Management U.S. development assistance US Agency for International Development Pashtu and Dari (Afghan languages).

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Interview Usage

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