TUESDAY AFTERNOON, a little Hollywood glamour was bestowed upon Washington, when an Academy Award-winning actress spoke at the State Department. The drab Loy Henderson Auditorium suddenly became a whole lot prettier as the distinguished guest speaker walked into the room. She flashed her pouty smile at the expectant audience, flipped her long brown hair over her shoulder, and smoothed her sleek black dress suit over her aerobicized figure before sitting down next to the other members of the panel.

Male interns swooned and a twenty-something female wearing a State Department employee badge declared, “I love her!” All seemed pleased to get a chance to sneak out of their moldy government offices for a dose of celebrity sex appeal. The guest of honor was Angelina Jolie, goodwill ambassador for the United Nations High Commission for Refugees. She spoke about an issue that is close to her heart–putting an end to human trafficking and sexual exploitation in Southeast Asia. Jolie has an adopted 3-year-old son from Cambodia. After her brief remarks, she introduced the documentary Trading Women, which was then shown to the audience.