Karim Camara

Karim Camara is a Christian minister, motivational speaker, writer and life coach in the United States. He is an expert on individual, organizational and community effectiveness. His everyday work addresses a full range of areas critical to human-development including social, spiritual and economic development. Camara’s varied roles and responsibilities include preaching to two faith communities- First Baptist Church of Crown Heights and Zion Shiloh Baptist Church- and serving in the New York State Legislature as the Assemblyman for the 43rd District of Brooklyn (includes parts of Crown Heights, Prospect Lefferts and Flatbush). He has been best described as an “Ambassador of Hope”.

A native of Brooklyn, Karim spent most of his childhood living in the Assembly District 43, the district he now represents and resides with his wife Orelia E. Merchant an assistant United States attorney in Brooklyn [ [http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/21/fashion/weddings/21merc.html?_r=1&oref=slogin "Orelia Merchant and Karim Camara"] "The New York Times" August 21, 2005] and their son. He also spent formative years both in Queens, NY and on a farm in Westtown, NY (Orange County). He graduated from Brooklyn Friends School [ http://www.brooklynfriends.org/alum/profiles/profile01_02.html "BFS Karim Camara ’88 "] ] , where he was introduced to the teachings of the founder of Quakerism, George Fox. He went on to attain his B.A. in English Literature and Chemistry from Xavier University of Louisiana and a Masters of Divinity from the New York Theological Seminary.

Camara who changed his last name, is the son of school principal Ms. Ora Abdur-Razzaq and Mr. Abdullah Abdur-Razzaq a retired nurse at Manhattan Psychiatric Center and at Harlem Hospital. His father, was the Lieutenant of the Fruit of Islam in the Nation of Islam’s Mosque # 7 under the leadership of Minister Malcolm X. Abdur-Razzaq left the Nation of Islam with Malcolm X in 1964 and served as his chief aide and assistant until he was assassinated in 1965. Karim Camara’s mother, born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida until her teens, is the Principal/Executive Director of Cush Campus Schools, a prek-8th grade, independent school located in Brooklyn, NY. She was raised in and serves as an evangelist in the Church of God in Christ, Inc. His parents were introduced by longtime community activist, radio personality and entrepreneur Bob Law. When he was one years old they founded the Al-Karim School which was named after him and which is now called Cush Campus Schools. Karim is the fourth of their five children together who were raised by their mother since he was five years of age.

Community and public service

Having two parents who were dedicated community servants left a great and lasting impression on him and continues to serve as great motivation to him.

In 1992, as founder and award-winning leader of an after-school, literacy program called Project R.I.S.E. (Reducing Illiteracy Scars through Education), based at a New Orleans public school with some of the lowest reading scores in the city, he was invited to meet President Bill Clinton to discuss the president’s idea for Americorps, a national community service program, and to present when he announced the program to the country. During this same phase of his life he also joined the student coalitions across the state of Louisiana that rallied against the campaign of former Ku Klux Klan member David Duke and helped prevent him from becoming Governor. These experiences were the beginning of his passion for politics as a tool to help improve the lives of its citizens.

Camara was elected to the New York State Assembly in 2005 in a special election that was called after the district's long-time Assemblyman and chairman of the Kings County Democratic Party Clarence Norman Jr. was convicted on various charges and stepped down. During that campaign, Camara spoke openly about his interest in pursuing term limits. While Camara won that election, [Hicks, Johnathan P. [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/24/nyregion/24brooklyn.html "New Guard, and Style, for Politics in Brooklyn "] "The New York Times" December 24, 2006] it was noted that he had close ties to the previous Assemblyman including being a member of the church where Clarence Norman Sr. is pastor. [Gardiner, Jill [http://www.nysun.com/article/21609 "Pastor From Norman's Father's Church Picked To Run for His Seat"] "The New York Sun" October 17, 2005] Camara quickly established himself as an independent, progressive voice in state politics. During the 2007 budget process he voted against his colleagues in the Democratic assembly on a healthcare budget that would have forced drastic cuts in local hospitals. He was one of the main organizers and founding members of the Religious Leaders of African Ancestry Concerned About Dar Fur whose mission was to fight to stop the genocide in the Dar Fur region of Sudan. And when the case of the Jena 6 in Jena, LA generated national attention, he organized the Justice for Jena rally in Brooklyn. Organized in only six days it was by many accounts the largest Jena event in the Tri-State region.

Prior to his election to the Assembly, Camara was the Director of Institutional Advancement (fundraising and organizational development) for the Cush Campus Schools, a pre-K - 8th grade independent school located in Crown Heights. [ Dent, David J. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950DE3DA103BF933A25751C0A96F958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=print "A Black Private School Prepares for a New Home"] "The New York Times", February 10 1999.] He has also worked in the past with the American Red Cross of Greater New York in their Emergency Family Center, a transitional housing shelter for displaced and abused women.

In keeping with a major theme of his campaign, Assemblyman Camara sponsored a bill to enact term limits on the state legislature, [ [http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?bn=A07594 "Bill Summary - A07594"] ] what he described as "a post-dated pink slip," and a reaction to the state government’s "failure to respond even modestly" to his constituents’ concerns.

In April 2007 Assemblyman Camara was stopped under suspicion of driving under the influence and speeding. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9502E6DB153EF935A15757C0A9619C8B63 "Metro Briefing | New York: Albany: Assemblyman Accused Of D.W.I."] "The New York Times" April 26, 2007] . In a publicly issued statement, the Assemblyman apologized for the embarrassment the incident may have caused and said that he intended to continue to "serve my constituents by addressing the significant issues before us". [ [http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/30/19/30_19letters.html "Arrested pol Karim Camara finally speaks out"] "The Brooklyn Paper" May 12, 2007] The case has been marked by suspicion including evidence destroyed by the police (the booking tape) and drastically inconsistent accounts by the arresting officer. Camara has maintained his full innocence since the pending matter was made public.

ee also

*New York State Assembly
*Crown Heights
*Flatbush
*Prospect Heights

References

External links

* [http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/?ad=043 Karim Camara's Assembly Website]
* [http://www.uber.com/243635195 Biography: New York State Democratic Committee]
* [http://www.brooklyndowntownstar.com/StoryDisplay.asp?PID=4&NewsStoryID=5532 Brooklyn Star on Camara's State of the District]
* [http://www.firstbaptistcrownheights.org/tp40/Default.asp?ID=33417 First Baptist Church of Crown Heights]
* [http://www.nyredcross.org/ American Red Cross in Greater New York]