The Passing of Colin Powell

Dear Howard University Community,

I am deeply saddened by today’s news that Colin Powell has passed away at the age of 84 of complications from COVID-19.
 
General Powell was a trailblazing Black figure in public life and true embodiment of the servant-leadership ideal. Over the course of a four-decade career in the military and government, he became the first African-American national security adviser, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and secretary of state. He was also a trustee emeritus of the Howard University Board of Trustees, having served on the board from 1995-2000.
 
After serving two Army tours in Vietnam, General Powell left his imprint on the American philosophy to war. He negotiated arms treaties with the Soviet Union at the end of the Cold War, he oversaw the invasion of Panama in 1989 and the Persian Gulf War in 1991, and he served in the George W. Bush administration during the Iraq War. It was General Powell’s belief that any war or battles waged by the United States should have clearly defined goals as well as public support.
 
General Powell served in three presidential administrations for Republican presidents. He was widely admired and greatly respected by the entire country and across partisan lines. His pragmatism and emphasis on problem-solving rather than blind devotion to ideology allowed him to transcend politics. As much as any government or political figure, he was seen as someone who put country ahead of party and service above self.
 
Born in Harlem, New York on April 5, 1937, to Jamaican immigrants, General Powell was raised in one of the most multicultural communities to be found in the United States at the time. The exposure he was afforded during his upbringing to diverse perspectives, traditions and cultures influenced the perspective he held and disseminated his entire life.
 
In one of the most iconic Commencement speeches in Howard University history, General Powell delivered a forceful rebuke of hatred and an inspiring oration on the power of love and tolerance. His 1994 address came at a time of tremendous tension on campus as a result of divisive speeches made on campus earlier in the year. While General Powell strongly defended the tenets of free speech, he warned that it was incumbent upon each of us individually to “sort out wisdom from foolishness.”
 
“We must find nothing to stand up and cheer about or applaud in a message of racial or ethnic hatred,” General Powell said during his Commencement address.
 
I was privileged to hear General Powell deliver this speech in person as I graduated from Howard’s School of Medicine that year. When I became president of Howard, I was grateful that General Powell made himself available to me. On many occasions throughout my presidency, he displayed this graciousness of spirit to me, offering sage advice, reflection, or simply the listening ear of a mentor. He became a trusted adviser, and I always enjoyed his pragmatic counsel on a variety of topics, especially about leadership.
 
General Powell would often give presentations on leadership. He also wrote a book on the subject, “It Worked for Me: In Life and Leadership.” I always found his lessons to be poignant and resonant with the situation I was trying to solve.
 
“Good leadership involves responsibility to the welfare of the group, which means that some people will get angry at your actions and decisions. It’s inevitable, if you’re honorable. Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity: you’ll avoid the tough decisions, you’ll avoid confronting the people who need to be confronted,” General Powell wrote. “By trying not to get anyone mad, and by treating everyone equally ‘nicely’ regardless of their contributions, you’ll simply ensure that the only people you’ll wind up angering are the most creative and productive people in the organization.”
 
As our country continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic that has tragically claimed the lives of so many luminaries like General Powell, we would do well today to heed his words. We must seek out and listen to all perspectives with a combination of openness and discernment, and we should treat all people we encounter with tolerance and respect.
 
Excellence in Truth and Service,
 
Wayne A. I. Frederick
Charles R. Drew Professor Surgery
President