Kevin Powell (born April 24, 1966) is an American writer, activist, and television personality. Powell is the author of 14 books, including The Education of Kevin Powell: A Boy's Journey into Manhood and When We Free the World published in 2020. Powell was a senior writer during the founding years of VIBE magazine from 1992 to 1996. Powell’s activism has focused on ending poverty, advocating for social justice and counteracting violence against women and girls through local, national and international initiatives. He was a Democratic candidate for Congress in Brooklyn, New York, in 2008 and 2010. Powell was the curator for the first exhibit on the history of hip-hop in America at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. In 2014, he was invited by the Welsh Government to the United Kingdom for a series of lectures and workshops on the 100th birthday of 20th century poet Dylan Thomas. As a result, he was named the International Ambassador for the Dylan Thomas Centennial in America. Cornell University owns The Kevin Powell Archive, documenting his work to date in print, photos, videos, books, handwritten notes, speeches, and select memorabilia beginning with his appearance in the first season of the first television reality series MTV's, The Real World: New York in 1992. Early life and education Powell was born and raised in Jersey City, NJ where his parents met after moving from South Carolina. Abandoned by his father, Powell was raised by a single mother from the South in the one-bedroom apartment they shared with his aunt and her son. Throughout a childhood marked by poverty, violence and abuse, Powell maintained a passion for reading and spent hours in the public library. He credits his mother with ensuring he received a better education than her own, and for instilling in him a commitment to learning. He and his cousin were the first in their family to graduate high school, and in 1984 Powell enrolled in Rutgers University through the Educational Opportunity Fund, a program created during the Civil Rights Movement to benefit poor youth. His memoir, The Education of Kevin Powell: A Boy's Journey into Manhood tells this story of his upbringing. At Rutgers, Powell studied political science, English and philosophy with the ambition of becoming a professional writer. Cheryl Wall introduced him to the critical study of Harlem Renaissance writers such as Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison,