Whether he was helping to organize the nascent civil rights movement in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, or touring South Africa in the grips of apartheid in the 1970s, Ambassador James A. Joseph had a knack for finding himself in places at the cusp of momentous social change.
Joseph says that a friend of his sums up his life thusly: “It’s interesting to see that wherever you were, you were always a troublemaker.”
For his part, Joseph denies that the sobriquet of “troublemaker” is a perfect fit. “I don’t call myself a troublemaker, any more than the Greek philosophers or Hebrew prophets were troublemakers,” he says. “They were strong advocates of change and they were seeking to improve the quality of life for people. That’s what I’ve always tried to do and what I do now.”
Joseph’s life story is in some ways an almost perfectly realized expression of the American success story. Born in Louisiana’s rural Cajun country, Joseph has lived a life filled with honors: serving as the U.S. Ambassador to South Africa in the 1990s, and enjoying high-level positions on foundation boards, in university leadership and in four presidential administrations.
As ambassador to South Africa from 1996 to 2000, he was witness to a country in the midst of the truth and reconciliation process, which sought to begin to heal the wounds of apartheid. In that capacity, Joseph was the only U.S. ambassador to present his credentials to the legendary Nelson Mandela.
His career momentum got its start at Southern University, where he joined the ROTC. After completing his military assignments, Joseph, who is the son of a minister, moved on to Yale Divinity School. His next step was a teaching and administrative post at Stillman College in the 1960s.
At the time, Tuscaloosa was home to a large Ku Klux Klan presence, meaning that Black citizens of that area were subjected to a deep terror that hindered the progression of the civil rights movement.
