Rest In Power

Colin Powell: A Political General

Remembering the life and legacy of the first Black US Secretary of State

Former US Secretary of State Colin Powell | Photo Courtesy of Vanity Fair

Today, on October 18th, 2021, American politician, diplomat, and four-star general, and former 65th US Secretary of State Colin L. Powell, passed away at the age of 84.

Powell with his wife and children. | Photo Courtesy of Assignment Point

Powell, who was being treated for multiple myeloma (a form of blood cancer), died at the Walter Reed Military Medical Center of complications from COVID-19. While his family confirmed Powell was fully vaccinated, the treatment “left his immune system compromised.”

Powell is survived by his wife of 59 years, Alma Johnson — Powell, and his three children: Michael, Linda, and Annemarie.

Colin Luther Powell was born on April 5th, 1937 in Harlem to Jamaican immigrant parents, Luther and Maud Powell. Despite his parents' pronunciation of his name, ‘Kahlin’, Powell respectfully preferred to pronounce his name as ‘Kohlin.’

After graduating from high school in 1954 and receiving a Bachelor’s Degree in Geology from the City College of New York in 1958, Powell joined the ROTC, (Reserve Officers’…