Many people have wondered if Colin Powell, the former U.S. secretary of state and a prominent figure in American politics, was related to Adam Clayton Powell Jr., the influential congressman and civil rights leader from Harlem. The rumor of a family connection has been circulating for decades, but is there any truth to it?
Who was Adam Clayton Powell Jr.?
Adam Clayton Powell Jr. (1908-1972) was an American Baptist pastor and politician who represented the Harlem neighborhood of New York City in the United States House of Representatives from 1945 until 1971. He was the first African American to be elected to Congress from New York, as well as the first from any state in the Northeast
He became a powerful national politician of the Democratic Party, and served as a national spokesman on civil rights and social issues. He also urged United States presidents to support emerging nations in Africa and Asia as they gained independence after colonialism. In 1961, after 16 years in the House, Powell became chairman of the Education and Labor Committee, the most powerful position held by an African American in Congress. As chairman, he supported the passage of important social and civil rights legislation under presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson1
Powell was also a controversial figure, who faced allegations of corruption, misconduct, and abuse of power. In 1967, he was excluded from his seat by Democratic Representatives-elect of the 90th United States Congress, but he was re-elected and regained the seat in the 1969 ruling by the Supreme Court of the United States in Powell v. McCormack. He lost his seat in 1970 to Charles Rangel and retired from electoral politics
Who was Colin Powell?
Colin Luther Powell (1937-2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who was the 65th United States secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American secretary of state
He served as a professional soldier for 35 years, rising to the rank of four-star general and becoming the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1989 to 1993, the highest military position in the Department of Defense. He played a leading role in several military operations, such as the invasion of Panama in 1989, Operation Desert Storm in 1991, and Operation Restore Hope in Somalia in 1993. He also advised presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush on national security and foreign policy issues
As secretary of state under President George W. Bush, he was a key figure in the U.S.-led coalition that invaded Iraq in 2003, based on the claim that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction. He later expressed regret for his role in presenting false intelligence to the United Nations Security Council to justify the war. He also supported multilateral diplomacy and international cooperation on various global challenges, such as terrorism, nuclear proliferation, human rights, and climate change
After leaving office, he remained active in public life as a speaker, author, philanthropist, and elder statesman. He endorsed Barack Obama for president in 2008 and 2012, breaking with his Republican Party affiliation. He died of complications from COVID-19 in 2021
The short answer is no.
According to their biographies and genealogies, Colin Powell and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. had no known blood relation or common ancestry.
Colin Powell’s parents were Jamaican immigrants who settled in Harlem in the 1920s. His father was Luther Theophilus Powell, a shipping clerk and factory worker, and his mother was Maud Arial McKoy, a seamstress. They were both of mixed African and Scottish descent
Adam Clayton Powell Jr.’s parents were both born poor in Virginia and West Virginia respectively. His father was Adam Clayton Powell Sr., a prominent Baptist minister who served as pastor of Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem for over four decades. His mother was Mattie Buster Shaffer, a domestic worker who later became a church organist and choir director. They were both of mixed African and European ancestry (and according to his father, American Indian on his mother’s side)
The two families had different origins, backgrounds, and histories.
However, there is some evidence that Colin Powell and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. knew each other personally and professionally.
Colin Powell grew up in Harlem and attended Morris High School in the Bronx, where he graduated in 1954. He later recalled that he admired Adam Clayton Powell Jr. as a charismatic leader and a role model for young black men. He said that he once met him at a political rally and shook his hand.
Adam Clayton Powell Jr. was also aware of Colin Powell’s military career and achievements. In 1989, when Colin Powell was nominated to be the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adam Clayton Powell III, the son of the congressman and a journalist, interviewed him for NPR. He asked him if he was related to his father, and Colin Powell replied: “No, I’m not. But I’ve always admired your father and what he did for Harlem and what he did for the nation.”
