Sister Souljah
Encyclopedia
Sister Souljah is an American
hip hop-generation author
, activist, recording artist, and film producer
. She gained prominence for Bill Clinton
's criticism of her remarks about race in the United States
during the 1992 presidential campaign
. Clinton's well-known repudiation of her comments led to what is now known in politics as a Sister Souljah moment
.
Souljah was the executive director of Daddy's House Social Programs Inc., a non-profit corporation for urban youth, financed by Sean Combs
and Bad Boy Entertainment.
. She recounts in her autobiography that she was born into poverty and raised on welfare for some years. At age 10 she moved with her family to the suburbs of Englewood, New Jersey
, a suburb with a strong African-American presence, a slight change from the big city feel of the Bronx. Englewood is also home to other famous Black artists such as George Benson
, Eddie Murphy
, and Regina Belle
. There she attended Dwight Morrow High School
.
Souljah disliked what American students were being taught in school systems across the country. She felt that the school systems purposely left out the African origins of civilization. Also, she criticized the absence of a comprehensive curriculum of African American history, which she felt that all students, black and white, needed to learn and understand in order to be properly educated. She felt that she was being taught very little of her history, since the junior high school and high school left out Black history, art, and culture. The Englewood school district, however, took an active role recruiting Black educators and administrators, which has lasted to the present day.
Souljah took a very active and special interest in learning everything she could about African history, which she felt was left out of the education curriculum in the United States purposely: "I supplemented my education in the White American
school system by reading African history, which was intentionally left out of the curriculum of American students." While at Dwight Morrow High School
, a school that had a relatively even distribution of Black-, Latino-, and Jewish-student enrollment and a majority Black administration during the time of her studies, from 1978 to 1981. She was a legislative intern in the House of Representatives. Souljah was also the recipient of several honors during her teenage years. She won the American Legion
's Constitutional Oratory Contest, a scholarship to attend Cornell University
's Advanced Summer Program.
Throughout college she traveled, visiting Britain, France
, Spain
, Portugal
, Finland
, and Russia
. Her academic accomplishments were reinforced with first-hand experiences as she worked in a medical center in Mtepa Tepa, a village located in Zimbabwe
, and assisted refugee children from Mozambique
. She also traveled to South Africa
and Zambia
. She graduated from Rutgers University
with a dual major in American History and African Studies
. She became a well-known and outspoken voice on campus and active writer for the school newspaper. One of her noted campus initiatives was spearheading a campaign to bring Jesse Jackson
to Rutgers to speak against the university's controversial investments in South Africa
at the time, when divestiture from apartheid-era South Africa was a heated political issue. Sister Souljah was part of the Rutgers Coalition for Divestment, which successfully organized the Rutgers University administration to divest US$3.6 million in its financial holding companies doing business in racist, pre-Nelson Mandela South Africa. Sister Souljah and students across the state of New Jersey also organized a successful campaign to get the state of New Jersey to divest more than US$1 billion of its financial holdings in apartheid South Africa.
In 1985, during her senior year at Rutgers University, she was offered a job by Reverend Benjamin Chavis of the United Church of Christ Commission for Racial Justice. She spent the next three years developing, organizing, and financing programs such as African Survival Camp, a 6-week summer sleep-away camp in Enfield, North Carolina. She also became the organizer of the National African Youth-Student Alliance and outspoken voice against racially motivated violence in cases such as Howard Beach, Yusuf Hawkins, and more.
Sister Souljah became a controversial figure during the 1990s as a frequent guest on American television and radio talk shows. Her comments drew attention and criticism due to their inflammatory nature concerning race relations. Her position of influence among Black Americans as a hiphop artist polarized groups and individuals both black and white and led to public controversy.
Sister Souljah is married to Mike Rich. They have one child named Michael Jr.
left the group after making anti-Semitic remarks. In 1992, she released her only album, 360 Degrees of Power
. Both of her videos, "The Final Solution: Slavery's Back in Effect" and "The Hate that Hate Produced," were banned by MTV
because of their inflammatory imagery. Her album sold only 27,000 copies, and so her label, Epic
/SME Records
, dropped her. It is believed that the album sold poorly because of public backlash from her comments in response to the beating of Rodney King, but it also received mixed reviews in the music press.
. In an interview conducted May 13, 1992, she was misquoted in the Washington Post as saying:
The quotation was later reproduced in the media, and she was widely criticized. Presidential candidate Bill Clinton
publicly criticized that statement—and Jesse Jackson for allowing her to be on his Rainbow Coalition—thus the Sister Souljah moment
was created.
They, however, did not publish the question the interviewer asked her which was
She then responded with the first quotation being that that is what the people carrying out the violence may have been thinking. Thus, the situation being another example of white american media attacking an African person at any cost.
. An indirect sequel of the novel, titled ), originally scheduled for October 14, 2008, was published November 4, 2008, and entered The New York Times bestseller list at #7 its first week out and remained there as of February 2009. Another sequel, , was released on April 12, 2011, and another novel, Porsche Santiaga, is due in 2012.
She also does occasional pieces for Essence Magazine and has written for The New Yorker
.
, she developed and financed the African Youth Survival Camp for children of homeless families, a 6-week summer sleep-away camp in Enfield, North Carolina. She has been a motivating force behind a number of hip-hop artists' efforts to give back to the community, organizing major youth events, programs, and summer camps with artists such as Lauryn Hill
, Doug E. Fresh
, and Sean "Diddy" Combs.
Souljah was the executive director of Daddy's House Social Programs Inc., a not-for-profit corporation for urban youth, financed by Sean Combs
and Bad Boy Entertainment. Daddy's House educates and prepares youth, aged 10–16, to be in control of their academic, cultural, and financial lives. The students progressing through the program earn support to travel throughout the world.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
hip hop-generation author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, activist, recording artist, and film producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
. She gained prominence for Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
's criticism of her remarks about race in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
during the 1992 presidential campaign
Bill Clinton presidential campaign, 1992
Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign for President of the United States was a critical turning point for the Democratic Party, which had controlled the White House for only four of the previous twenty-four years. Initially viewed as an unlikely prospect to win his party's nomination, Clinton did so and...
. Clinton's well-known repudiation of her comments led to what is now known in politics as a Sister Souljah moment
Sister Souljah moment
In United States politics, a Sister Souljah moment is a politician's public repudiation of an extremist person or group, statement, or position perceived to have some association with the politician or the politician's party...
.
Souljah was the executive director of Daddy's House Social Programs Inc., a non-profit corporation for urban youth, financed by Sean Combs
Sean Combs
Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
and Bad Boy Entertainment.
Early life
Souljah was born Lisa Williamson in the Bronx, New YorkThe Bronx
The Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
. She recounts in her autobiography that she was born into poverty and raised on welfare for some years. At age 10 she moved with her family to the suburbs of Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood, New Jersey
Englewood is a city located in Bergen County, New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 27,147.Englewood was incorporated as a city by an Act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 17, 1899, from portions of Ridgefield Township and the remaining portions of...
, a suburb with a strong African-American presence, a slight change from the big city feel of the Bronx. Englewood is also home to other famous Black artists such as George Benson
George Benson
George Benson is a ten Grammy Award winning American musician, whose production career began at the age of twenty-one as a jazz guitarist....
, Eddie Murphy
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan "Eddie" Murphy is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, singer, director, and musician....
, and Regina Belle
Regina Belle
Regina Belle is a singer-songwriter who first surfaced in the late 1980s. She is notable for her Grammy award winning duet with Peabo Bryson, "A Whole New World".-Biography:Regina Belle was born in Englewood, New Jersey...
. There she attended Dwight Morrow High School
Dwight Morrow High School
Dwight Morrow High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Englewood, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Englewood Public School District. The school also serves students from Englewood Cliffs, who attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship...
.
Souljah disliked what American students were being taught in school systems across the country. She felt that the school systems purposely left out the African origins of civilization. Also, she criticized the absence of a comprehensive curriculum of African American history, which she felt that all students, black and white, needed to learn and understand in order to be properly educated. She felt that she was being taught very little of her history, since the junior high school and high school left out Black history, art, and culture. The Englewood school district, however, took an active role recruiting Black educators and administrators, which has lasted to the present day.
Souljah took a very active and special interest in learning everything she could about African history, which she felt was left out of the education curriculum in the United States purposely: "I supplemented my education in the White American
White American
White Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
school system by reading African history, which was intentionally left out of the curriculum of American students." While at Dwight Morrow High School
Dwight Morrow High School
Dwight Morrow High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school located in Englewood, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Englewood Public School District. The school also serves students from Englewood Cliffs, who attend as part of a sending/receiving relationship...
, a school that had a relatively even distribution of Black-, Latino-, and Jewish-student enrollment and a majority Black administration during the time of her studies, from 1978 to 1981. She was a legislative intern in the House of Representatives. Souljah was also the recipient of several honors during her teenage years. She won the American Legion
American Legion
The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...
's Constitutional Oratory Contest, a scholarship to attend Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
's Advanced Summer Program.
Throughout college she traveled, visiting Britain, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Her academic accomplishments were reinforced with first-hand experiences as she worked in a medical center in Mtepa Tepa, a village located in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
, and assisted refugee children from Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
. She also traveled to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
. She graduated from Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
with a dual major in American History and African Studies
African studies
African studies is the study of Africa, especially the cultures and societies of Africa .The field includes the study of:Culture of Africa, History of Africa , Anthropology of Africa , Politics of Africa, Economy of Africa African studies is the study of Africa, especially the cultures and...
. She became a well-known and outspoken voice on campus and active writer for the school newspaper. One of her noted campus initiatives was spearheading a campaign to bring Jesse Jackson
Jesse Jackson
Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. is an African-American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as shadow senator for the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1997. He was the founder of both entities that merged to...
to Rutgers to speak against the university's controversial investments in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
at the time, when divestiture from apartheid-era South Africa was a heated political issue. Sister Souljah was part of the Rutgers Coalition for Divestment, which successfully organized the Rutgers University administration to divest US$3.6 million in its financial holding companies doing business in racist, pre-Nelson Mandela South Africa. Sister Souljah and students across the state of New Jersey also organized a successful campaign to get the state of New Jersey to divest more than US$1 billion of its financial holdings in apartheid South Africa.
In 1985, during her senior year at Rutgers University, she was offered a job by Reverend Benjamin Chavis of the United Church of Christ Commission for Racial Justice. She spent the next three years developing, organizing, and financing programs such as African Survival Camp, a 6-week summer sleep-away camp in Enfield, North Carolina. She also became the organizer of the National African Youth-Student Alliance and outspoken voice against racially motivated violence in cases such as Howard Beach, Yusuf Hawkins, and more.
Sister Souljah became a controversial figure during the 1990s as a frequent guest on American television and radio talk shows. Her comments drew attention and criticism due to their inflammatory nature concerning race relations. Her position of influence among Black Americans as a hiphop artist polarized groups and individuals both black and white and led to public controversy.
Sister Souljah is married to Mike Rich. They have one child named Michael Jr.
Music
She appeared on several tracks as a featured guest with the hip-hop group Public Enemy, and she became a full member of the group when Professor GriffProfessor Griff
Professor Griff is an American rapper and spoken word artist. He is a member of the hip hop group Public Enemy and head of the Security of the First World.-Early years in Public Enemy:...
left the group after making anti-Semitic remarks. In 1992, she released her only album, 360 Degrees of Power
360 Degrees of Power
360 Degrees of Power is the only album by female emcee Sister Souljah, released in 1992 on Epic/SME Records. The album was met with heavy criticism, not only for its performances—most of which were angry spoken-word tirades that Souljah screamed rather than traditional hip-hop rhymes—but also...
. Both of her videos, "The Final Solution: Slavery's Back in Effect" and "The Hate that Hate Produced," were banned by MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
because of their inflammatory imagery. Her album sold only 27,000 copies, and so her label, Epic
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
/SME Records
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
, dropped her. It is believed that the album sold poorly because of public backlash from her comments in response to the beating of Rodney King, but it also received mixed reviews in the music press.
Sister Souljah moment
Souljah became infamous for her statements about the 1992 Los Angeles riots1992 Los Angeles riots
The 1992 Los Angeles Riots or South Central Riots, also known as the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest were sparked on April 29, 1992, when a jury acquitted three white and one hispanic Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King following a...
. In an interview conducted May 13, 1992, she was misquoted in the Washington Post as saying:
The quotation was later reproduced in the media, and she was widely criticized. Presidential candidate Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
publicly criticized that statement—and Jesse Jackson for allowing her to be on his Rainbow Coalition—thus the Sister Souljah moment
Sister Souljah moment
In United States politics, a Sister Souljah moment is a politician's public repudiation of an extremist person or group, statement, or position perceived to have some association with the politician or the politician's party...
was created.
They, however, did not publish the question the interviewer asked her which was
She then responded with the first quotation being that that is what the people carrying out the violence may have been thinking. Thus, the situation being another example of white american media attacking an African person at any cost.
Author
In 1995 Sister Souljah published a volume of autobiography titled ). In 1999, she made her debut as a novelist with ). The latter was praised by The New YorkerThe New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
. An indirect sequel of the novel, titled ), originally scheduled for October 14, 2008, was published November 4, 2008, and entered The New York Times bestseller list at #7 its first week out and remained there as of February 2009. Another sequel, , was released on April 12, 2011, and another novel, Porsche Santiaga, is due in 2012.
She also does occasional pieces for Essence Magazine and has written for The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
.
Community activist
As a community activist, Souljah has organized a number of service programs. In 1985, during her senior year at Rutgers UniversityRutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
, she developed and financed the African Youth Survival Camp for children of homeless families, a 6-week summer sleep-away camp in Enfield, North Carolina. She has been a motivating force behind a number of hip-hop artists' efforts to give back to the community, organizing major youth events, programs, and summer camps with artists such as Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Noelle Hill is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress.Early in her career, she established her reputation as a member of the Fugees. In 1998, she launched her solo career with the release of the commercially successful and critically acclaimed album, The Miseducation of...
, Doug E. Fresh
Doug E. Fresh
Douglas E. Davis , better known by the stage name Doug E. Fresh, is an American rapper, record producer, and beat boxer, also known as the Human Beat Box...
, and Sean "Diddy" Combs.
Souljah was the executive director of Daddy's House Social Programs Inc., a not-for-profit corporation for urban youth, financed by Sean Combs
Sean Combs
Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
and Bad Boy Entertainment. Daddy's House educates and prepares youth, aged 10–16, to be in control of their academic, cultural, and financial lives. The students progressing through the program earn support to travel throughout the world.
Discography
| Album information |
|---|
| 360 Degrees of Power 360 Degrees of Power 360 Degrees of Power is the only album by female emcee Sister Souljah, released in 1992 on Epic/SME Records. The album was met with heavy criticism, not only for its performances—most of which were angry spoken-word tirades that Souljah screamed rather than traditional hip-hop rhymes—but also...
|
External links
- Transcript of Sister Souljah's 1992 interview regarding the Los Angeles riots at the LINGUIST ListLinguist ListThe LINGUIST List is a major online resource for the academic field of linguistics. It was founded by Anthony Aristar in early 1990 at the University of Western Australia, and is used as a reference by the National Science Foundation in the United States...
- Sister Souljah Statement, Justifies her 1992 comments at the Rock Out Censorship (ROC)
- Profile at Harlem Live
- Profile at Washington University St Louis
- A review of The Coldest Winter Ever at Salon.com
- "The Hate that Hate Produced" music video at Youtube