Four-Star General Colin Powell first African American U.S. Secretary of State, dies due to Covid-19 complications
posted by Jacqueline Leibman | October 25, 2021 | In NewsIt was announced on October 18 via his official Facebook page that former Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Colin L. Powell, 84, had passed away due to complications from COVID-19.
According to the family statement, he was receiving treatment at Walter Reed National Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. General Powell also suffered from Parkinson’s disease and multiple myeloma, a rare and incurable cancer that affects a person’s white plasma cells which in turn leads to a weakened immune system. African Americans are twice as likely to develop multiple myeloma than other races.
According to the statement, Gen. Powell did receive the COVID-19 vaccination, however his ongoing health conditions only exacerbated his COVID-19 symptoms. Gen. Powell is survived by his wife, Alma Vivian Powell, and his three children.
Gen. Powell, a son of Jamaican immigrants, was born April 5, 1937, in New York City. He grew up in Harlem and South Bronx before attending the City College of New York. While in college, he served in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC).
Upon graduation, he entered the Army in 1958 as a second lieutenant and served two tours in Vietnam. He then earned his M.B.A from George Washington University, and in 1972 he held his first political position as a White House fellow. From there he worked his way up, becoming one of the United States’s leading national security voices. He served in national defense roles under Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan.
In August 1989, Powell a four-star general was nominated by President George H.W. Bush for the position of chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Gen. Powell was the first African American to hold the position, and, at the time, the youngest man to be appointed to the position. Gen. Powell presided over the Desert Shield and Desert Storm operation of the Persian Gulf crisis.
He officially retired from the military in 1993, after 35 years of service. He then joined the Republican party and continued to speak out on national concerns. In 2001 he was appointed as the first Black Secretary of State, but announced his resignation in 2004.
In a statement released by the White House, President Biden regarded Gen. Powell as someone who “repeatedly broke racial barriers, blazing a trail for others to follow, and was committed throughout his life to investing in the next generation of leadership. Colin Powell was a good man who I was proud to call my friend, and he will be remembered in history as one of our great Americans.”
Pres. Biden ordered all U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff until sunset on October 22. A memorial service for Gen. Powell will be held on Nov. 5 by invitation only at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.
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