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David P. Rawson (born 1941) is an American diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Rwanda and Mali. His service in Rwanda occurred during the Rwandan genocide of 1994.

Early life and education
Rawson was born in Addison, Michigan as the son of missionaries. In 1947 he moved to Burundi with his parents, where his father ran a medical clinic.

In 1958, Rawson returned to the United States and attended Malone College (B.A.) and American University (M.A. and PhD). After completing his PhD, he returned to Malone College and taught for six years before joining the United States Department of State. Rawson also received a postdoctoral grant to investigate the relationship between the political situation and religious culture in the countries of Rwanda and Burundi.

Career
From 1986 to 1988, Rawson was a deputy chief of mission for the American Embassy in Somalia, and from 1989-1991, he was director of the Office of West African Affairs within the State Department's Bureau of African Affairs.

From 1993 to 1996, Rawson served as an ambassador to Rwanda, a nation then experiencing ethnic tensions between the Hutus and Tutsis. When the plane of Rwandan president Juvénal Habyarimana, a Hutu, was shot down, the Hutus blamed it on the Tutsis, leading to a genocide between April and July of 1994. The United States government ordered American officials, including Rawson, to leave the country.

After the Rwandan Patriotic Front took control of the government in July 1994, Rawson returned to Rwanda to provide emergency relief and to negotiate peace agreements. Rawson has since stated, however, that he believes he failed in his role as a peacekeeper.

From 1996 to 1999, Rawson served as the U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Mali.

Post-diplomatic career
After retiring from foreign affairs in 1999, Rawson moved to Michigan and taught at Spring Arbor University and Hillsdale College.

Since 2018 Rawson has lived in Oregon and teaches at George Fox University. He has donated his personal archives to the university, including declassified documents used in the research of his book Prelude to Genocide: Arusha, Rwanda, and the Failure of Diplomacy.

Personal life
Rawson's first wife died in an automobile accident in 1977. He was in the vehicle at the time of the crash and states that this incident was "most trying circumstance" of his life.

Rawson is a Christian.