Colin Powell
The Political General
By DALE RICARDO SHIELDS
April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021
“If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude.” – Colin Luther Powell
“Have a vision. Be demanding.” – Colin Luther Powell
The story of Colin Luther Powell is the epitome of the American Dream. Colin Powell was born to Jamaican immigrant parents in New York’s Harlem borough at a time when African-Americans were given very few opportunities to succeed. However, Colin Powell would go on to defy the odds to serve in the highest position in the United States Military and become the first African-American Secretary of State. Colin Powell is one of the most admired and respected people in the United States, and he has served under Republican and Democratic Presidents even though he considers himself a Republican. Throughout his military and political career, Colin Powell has been very influential in the United States Military and Government.
Early Life
Colin Powell’s parents immigrated from Jamaica in the West Indies to the United States to start a more prosperous and opportunistic life. Colin was born in Harlem on April 5, 1937, however, he was raised in South Bronx from the age of four. Colin was named after a heroic World War II flyer named Colin P. Kelly Jr. Powell was the second child of Maud Arial and Luther Theophilus Powell. Powell attended Morris High School before moving on to City College in New York in 1954.
“I was doing selfies 60 years before you Facebook folks.”
