Full Name: Dr. Condoleezza Rice
Date of Birth: November 14, 1954
Place of Birth: Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Died: N/A
Place of Death: N/A
Classification: Leaders & Revolutionaries
Born and raised in the southern United States where the process of desegregation caused much strife for the African American communities, Condoleezza Rice was brought up by her minister father and school teacher mother. As a member of the middle-class of the period, she was able to take classes focusing on languages, arts, and dance. Her parents wanted the best for her. Now she, in turn, wants the best for a nation that allowed her to become one of the most respected and powerful women in the world.
Amongst the struggles of her early childhood were the Jim Crow laws that separated African Americans from whites in public domains – namely on the bus, in restaurants, theaters, cinemas, and even bathrooms. While she was always told to be proud of her heritage, as an engaging child, she wondered why she and her family had to often live in fear.
She soon moved with her family to Denver, which was much more accepting of African Americans holding high positions. Condoleezza’s father held a position at the University of Denver and young Rice attended a Catholic school where she received a top-notch private education. Her father soon became a dean at the University and that is when Condoleezza began studying there.
Earning her B.A. in only a couple of years, she went on to receive a Master’s Degree from the University of Notre Dame in political science, which saw her as an instant candidate to work for the United States Department. By the time she was 26, she had earned her Ph.D. in Political Science from Denver. Following, she worked at Stanford University and Dr. Rice soon became Provost Rice and was in charge of the school’s multi-billion dollar endowment.
When George W. Bush began running for president, Condoleezza Rice became active in his campaign and rose to become his foreign policy advisor. After Bush won the presidency, Rice became a proponent of the invasion of Iraq. She became Bush’s National Security Advisor in 2004 and with the resignation of Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice became the U.S. Secretary of State.
