Bakari Sellers facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bakari Sellers
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Sellers in 2024
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| Member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from the 90th district |
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| In office December 5, 2006 – December 2, 2014 |
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| Preceded by | Thomas Rhoad Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Justin Bamberg |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 18, 1984 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Parent | Cleveland Sellers (father) Gwen Williamson Sellers (mother) |
| Education | Morehouse College (BA) University of South Carolina (JD) |
Bakari T. Sellers (born September 18, 1984) is an American attorney, a person who gives legal advice, and a political commentator, someone who talks about politics on TV or online. He is also a former politician.
Sellers served in the South Carolina House of Representatives for the 90th District. He was a representative from 2006 to 2014. In 2014, he was the Democratic candidate for Lieutenant Governor in South Carolina. Since 2015, Sellers has been a political commentator on CNN, a news channel.
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Early Life and Education
Bakari Sellers was born on September 18, 1984. His parents are Gwendolyn Sellers and Cleveland Sellers, a well-known civil rights activist and professor.
He grew up in Bamberg County, South Carolina. He went to Orangeburg-Wilkinson Senior High School in Orangeburg, South Carolina.
In 2005, Sellers earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in African-American Studies. He received this from Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia. Morehouse is a private college for men and is historically black. In 2008, he earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law. This degree allows him to practice law.
Sellers has worked for important people like Congressman James Clyburn. He also worked for former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin.
Bakari Sellers' Career
Legal Work
Sellers has been an attorney with the Strom Law Firm, L.L.C. This law firm is in Columbia, South Carolina. He started working there in 2007.
He also serves on the board of directors for two organizations. One is Level Brands, which helps manage different brands. The other is Let America Vote, a group that works to protect voting rights. This group was started by Jason Kander.
Political Journey
Bakari Sellers represented South Carolina's 90th district. He was part of the state legislature's lower house. He served from 2006 to 2014. He became the youngest African American elected official in the country. He was only 22 years old when he was first elected.
He left his seat in the South Carolina House of Representatives to run for Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina in 2014. However, he did not win the election. Henry McMaster won instead. Justin T. Bamberg took over his seat in the House.
Supporting Israel
Sellers is a strong African-American supporter of Israel. He first attended the annual American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference. He went to this conference when he was a student body president at Morehouse College.
In 2016, he wrote a letter with 60 other African-American politicians. The letter asked the Democratic National Committee to keep the same language in their platform. They did not want the platform to say that Israel was "occupying" Palestine. This statement had appeared in earlier Democratic platforms.
Public Discussion and Apology
In 2019, an event happened at the Lincoln Memorial. It involved a teenager and a Native American activist. Bakari Sellers made a comment about the teenager on Twitter. He later deleted his tweet. Sellers explained that his comment was "metaphoric" and "taken out of context." He still believed the students had shown "xenophobic, racist behavior."
Achievements and Books
Honors and Awards
In 2010, Time magazine recognized Sellers. They included him on their "40 Under 40" list. This list features 40 influential people under the age of 40.
In 2012, Politico magazine also recognized him. They named Sellers on their "50 politicos to watch" list. This list highlights 50 politicians to keep an eye on.
Sellers was also named HBCU Top 30 Under 30 in July 2014. This honor recognizes young leaders from Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Published Books
In May 2020, Bakari Sellers released his autobiography. An autobiography is a book about a person's own life. The book is called My Vanishing Country. It focuses on the lives of African-American working-class people in the rural Southern United States.
On April 23, 2024, his second book was released. It is titled The Moment: Thoughts on the Race Reckoning That Wasn't and How We All Can Move Forward Now.
Personal Life
In the summer of 2015, Bakari Sellers married Ellen Rucker Carter. She is a chiropractor and also co-owns Rucker Roots haircare products. They have twins, a boy and a girl, who were born in 2018.
