DORAL, Fla. – At one point in the 1990s, Howard University was the epicenter of black artistic expression, with the likes of Sean “Diddy” Combs, Laz Alonso, Taraji P. Henson, Anthony Anderson and Wendy Raquel Robinson attending the HBCU giant at the same time. Anderson, Robinson and Alonso touched upon that magical moment in time and the importance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities at the 18th Black Enterprise Golf & Tennis Challenge in suburban Miami.
Alonso put it succinctly. “It is an excellent training ground to be the best that you can be regardless of what that is,” he said to appreciative applause.
All have gone on to prosperous careers in entertainment. Diddy has amassed an estimated empire of over $400 million through his direction of the likes of Notorious BIG, Mary J. Blige and Jodeci. Henson has garnered widespread acclaim and love as well as an Academy Award nomination through Baby Boy and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Alonso was the star in the greatest box-office attraction in motion picture history with Avatar and has experienced enhanced fame via the Hollywood vehicle Jumping the Broom, Breakout Kings and Straw Dogs. And Anthony Anderson is thriving in the comedy game and starring in successful movies and TV dramas such as “Law & Order,” “The Shield” and the Terrence Howard-led theatrical hit Hustle & Flow.
The thriving thespians shared their testimony on HBCUs and Howard University in particular:
Anthony Anderson: “I just want to talk about Howard University for a second; I’m pretty sure that every campus has this. But, at a particular point in time, you had all this powerful energy there — from the likes of myself, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Laz Alonso, Paula Jai Parker, Taraji P. Henson, Ananda Lewis, A.J. Parker and Diddy. It was just amazing to have all of that creative energy in one place at the same time. And to watch all them grow — and some names I forgot to mention — and all have gone on to excel in their individual [careers]. And it goes back to being what the host says is mental invincibility.”
Laz Alonso: “One thing about Howard, and I feel this way about all HBCUs, you don’t have to necessarily be a member of anything to be a man or a woman in whatever it is that you do. I’ve been to a lot of schools, and I’m not dissing any other schools. But at some schools, you have to be in a fraternity or you have to be on a specific sports team to be the man at that school. At Howard, you can be the man [or woman] if you are in the finance school or business school. You are still the man. Everyone has that respect for each other. It is an excellent training ground to be the best that you can be regardless of what that is. And there was no prejudice in what that is you wanted to pursue.”
Wendy Raquel Robinson [“The Game” and “The Steve Harvey Show”]: “I was in the school of fine arts, and I didn’t get to pledge a sorority or anything like that. There was an organization on campus called DIVAS — Divine, Intelligent and Versatile Artists — and it helped you get into movies and plays on campus. It was a sisterhood. But you didn’t need it to be the woman on campus.”
