Colin Powell was born in Harlem in New York City. He attended college at the City College of New York where he joined the U.S. Army ROTC. After he graduated, he continued his career in the military and he was a professional soldier for 35 years. He became the highest ranking African-American in the military in the history of the United States. He was a four-star general. Powell served as the National Security Advisor (1987-1989) and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (1989-1993. He received many awards for his bravery. In 2001, Colin Powell was chosen to be the Secretary of State and got to meet the leaders of other countries. He was the first African American Secretary of State. He resigned from this position in 2004.