Historical Figures Codexery

Colin Powell

American general, diplomat, and statesman; first Black U.S. secretary of state

Colin Luther Powell was born on 5 April 1937 in Harlem, New York, to Jamaican immigrant parents.[1][2] He served as the 12th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and later as the first Black United States secretary of state.[3][4][2]

Quick Facts

Order
65th
Office
United States Secretary of State
President
George W. Bush
Deputy
Richard Armitage
Took office
January 20, 2001
Left office
January 26, 2005
Predecessor
Madeleine Albright
Successor
Condoleezza Rice

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Powell graduated from the City College of New York in 1958 with a bachelor of science degree in geology.[5] Powell served two tours in Vietnam, was wounded by a punji stake, and later rescued three people from a burning helicopter crash.[6][7] He earned a Master of Business Administration degree from George Washington University in 1971.[8][9] Powell oversaw responses to 28 crises during his chairmanship, including the invasion of Panama and Operation Desert Storm.[10]

While a student at the City College of New York, Powell joined the ROTC, where he achieved top grades and led the precision drill team, reaching the rank of cadet colonel.[11][2] Under President George W. Bush, Powell served as Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005.[4][12] In a 2013 interview, Powell stated that he voted for the President in both 2008 and 2012 because the opposing campaign's economic proposals were not appropriate for the economic conditions at those times.[13]

What the cited sources add

A CNN fast facts record states that Powell participated in ROTC in college, leading the precision drill team and attaining the rank of cadet colonel.[2] The same source notes that Powell was wounded in Vietnam by a Viet Cong booby trap in 1963 and again in a helicopter crash in 1969.[2] A 1995 Seattle Times article reported that Powell rejected Bush's offer to be CIA director because he was troubled by Bush's 1988 campaign exploitation of a black murderer.[14] In a 2013 Fox News interview, Powell stated that he became a Republican officially in 1995 after deciding not to run for office.[13]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Biographies of the Secretary of State:Colin Luther Powell", US Department of State, Office of the Historian; Palmowski, "A Dictionary of Contemporary World History", Oxford University Press, 2008; Schmitt, "Colin Powell, Who Shaped U.S. National Security, Dies at 84", The New York Times, October 18, 2021; Schmitt, "Colin Powell, Who Shaped U.S. National Security, Dies at 84", The New York Times, October 18, 2021; Oster, "Colin Powell, U.S. Army general-turned-top diplomat, dies at 84", The Japan Times, October 18, 2021 (original not read en.wikipedia.org
  2. "Colin Powell Fast Facts", CNN, March 30, 2016. facts only, no text reused. cnn.com
  3. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The 14 Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff", Joint History Office, US Department of Defense, August 10, 1999 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Clark, "Bush names Powell as choice for U.S. secretary of state", CNN, December 16, 2000; Clark, "Bush names Powell as choice for U.S. secretary of state", CNN, December 16, 2000; Vulliamy, "Bush chooses Powell", The Guardian, December 17, 2000; Schmitt, "Colin Powell, Who Shaped U.S. National Security, Dies at 84", The New York Times, October 18, 2021 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Four things you didn't know about Colin Powell", Los Angeles Times, October 18, 2021; "Former Secretary of State Gen. Colin Powell and Mario Cuomo, former governor of New York State, each a former Shabbos goy, both share fond recollections of the; "Colin Powell Fast Facts", CNN, April 2, 2017; "About Gen. Colin L. Powell, USA (Ret.)", The Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership, The City College of New York, July 2, 2015; Schwab, "Colin Powell: bad student", May 30, 2012 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Kearny, Cresson H., "Jungle Snafus...And Remedies", Oregon Institute of Science & Medicine, 1996, p. 179; Steins 2003, p. 25–26 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Colin Powell", CNN, 1996; Finlayson, "Colin Powell", Twenty-First Century Books, 2003, p. 55 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Colin L. Powell GW's Bicentennial Celebration The George Washington University", bicentennial.gwu.edu (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Colin Powell Fast Facts", CNN, April 2, 2017; "Obituary: Colin Powell", BBC News, October 18, 2021 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Steins 2003, p. 25–26 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Honoring General Colin Powell", National Museum of African American History and Culture; "'It Worked For Me': Life Lessons From Colin Powell", NPR, May 22, 2012 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  12. Wikipedia, "Colin Powell" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: LaFeber 2009, p. 71 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  13. O'Reilly, "Bill O'Reilly: A 'No Spin' interview with Colin Powell", Fox News, January 29, 2013. facts only, no text reused. foxnews.com
  14. Schram, "Don't Count Out Colin Powell", The Seattle Times, January 21, 1995. facts only, no text reused. archive.seattletimes.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Colin Powell (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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