Читать книгу Freedom Facts and Firsts - Jessie Carney Smith - Страница 25

Russell Simmons was born in Queens, New York, on October 4, 1957. He recognized the potential of rap music in the 1980s and the way in which it was being overlooked by the music industry. Thus, he began promoting the music and producing records. He later formed production companies and clothing lines that aided in moving this urban music and its artists into mainstream America.

In his endeavors, Simmons has not left the African American community behind. He has continuously provided ways in which youth can be empowered and has served as a role model for responsible use of that power, acting as a voice and a positive force in the community. Simmons established the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation that supports the arts, and The Rush Impact Mentorship Initiative, which seeks to give back to youth, especially urban youth. In 2001, he co-founded the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN) with Benjamin Chavis. HSAN encourages political involvement; its programmatic strategy statement on its Web site indicates its focus is on “community development issues related to equal access to high quality public education and literacy, freedom of speech, voter education [and registration], economic advancement, and youth leadership development.” He fought for and won the repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws in New York. On returning from a trip to Africa in 2007, he formed the Diamond Empowerment Fund (DEF), a nonprofit program dedicated to economic and educational empowerment in diamond producing African countries. Simmons’s endeavors reflect qualities necessary for strengthening the community in his efforts to empower, in his alliances with other individuals and groups, and his broad definition of community.

Helen R. Houston