Comments

Interviewee: Abdul Qadir Askia

Interviewer: Steven Payne

Transcription by the Bronx Historical Society

Summary by Gabriel Capellan

July 1, 2022

Disciplines

African American Studies | Public History

Abstract

Sixth poll mark of the Kappa Alpha Psi (KAP) Fraternity, Abdul Qadir Askia is an African American man who is an accomplished professional in investment operations. He describes his early life as being nurtured with other cultures as he moved around New York City.

His father came to Brooklyn after migrating from California, where he was a member of the Black Panther Party, and where he would meet his mother. Askia lived in Brooklyn until he was seven, when he was sent to a boarding school in Senegal. When he came back, he moved around from place to place, from The Bronx to Brooklyn to Queens to Harlem. His childhood was characterized by experiencing different cultures such as East Asian, Carribean, Latino, and Black culture.

His educational journey officially started when he attended Frederick Douglass Academy, an experimental public high school in Harlem. This school would end up pushing Askia to attend Lincoln University, where he pledged to be a member of KAP. His father disapproved of his decision and he ended up walking away from the fraternity since he believed it conflicted with his commitment to Islam.

Once he left the fraternity, his financial mentor came to him with an opportunity to work at Citigroup in Delaware but he would need to drop out of school. He took the opportunity and it ended up being the thing that launched his career. Once he was done with Citigroup, he would then become the most senior Black person at the firm, Sculptor Capital, where he controls two-thirds of the firm; around $30 billion.

While he was successful in his career, Askia still felt incomplete about the fraternity. In 2012, he went to John Jay College to finish his education and he wanted to rejoin the fraternity but was rejected since they believed he wasn’t a good fit, so they sent him to The Bronx chapter instead. He thought the chapter was a joke since he claimed they were dressed down, when he first met them.

Despite this, he stood with the chapter and it flourished. It would become one of the most dominant in NYC. KAP emphasized service for the community, and Askia showed it in his mentoring program he ran. The Bronx is where he gained his grit, encountered a different level of poverty, and showed his growth with the chapter.

Through his work in the chapter, he was recognized as a powerhouse there and he was going to be promoted as the vice poll mark, then the poll mark. He has clear goals as the poll mark and where he wants to take it. He wants to find a physical location for the chapter, create more connections for it, make large-scale events for the community, and create more funding to give back to the community; namely, scholarships and meals.

Askia, a man who traded his education for his career, managed extraordinary feats to become an accomplished figure in investment operations. Despite this, he came back and helped his community with KAP.

Link to Video Recording: https://cdm17265.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/baahp/id/61/rec/1

Download
COinS