Star Parker is the founder and president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education (CURE) a Washington D.C. based public policy institute that fights poverty and restores dignity through messages of faith, freedom and personal responsibility.
Star is a nationally syndicated columnist and hosts a weekly television news show, CURE America, that is broadcast on the National Religious Broadcasters Network, the TCT Network and streaming services. Guests include Members of Congress, Administration officials and public opinion leaders in Washington D.C. and around the country for in-depth policy discussions on news of the day.
With first-hand experience in the grip of welfare dependency, a Christian conversion changed Star's life. She started a business in Los Angeles and began her activism. She began consulting with federal and state legislators on market-based strategies to fight poverty including federal Welfare Reform that passed in the mid-90's. She founded CURE in 1995 to bring new ideas to policy discussions on how to transition America's poor from government dependency.
The vision of CURE is to preserve, promote and protect Christianity, capitalism and our constitution to improve culture, reduce government dependency, and to build race relations. CURE works in public policy by communicating solutions to opinion leaders directly and through the media in the public square. We also communicate to poor communities through CURE's clergy program, a national network of more than 500 clergy, many who serve in hardest-hit communities. CURE's daily news blog, blackcommunitynews.com, provides updates on the latest policy solutions to reduce poverty.
In 2020, Star was appointed by President Donald Trump to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights California Advisory Committee. She was appointed in 2018 by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to the U.S. Frederick Douglass Bicentennial Commission. In 2017, Star joined the White House Opportunity Initiative advisory team to share ideas on how to best fix our nation's most distressed zip codes.
Star holds a bachelor's degree in Marketing and International Business from Woodbury University and has received numerous awards and commendations for her work on public policy issues. In 2016, CPAC honored her with the "Ronald Reagan Foot Soldier of the Year." In 2017, Star was the recipient of the Groundswell "Impact" award, and in 2018, Bott Radio Network presented Star with its annual "Queen Esther" award. In 1996, she was a featured speaker at the Republican National Convention.
Serving on the National Religious Broadcaster Board of Directors and the Board of Directors at the Leadership Institute, Star is active in helping other organizations that impact the culture particularly for younger generations. To date, Star has spoken on more than 225 college campuses, including Harvard, Berkeley, Emory, Liberty, Franciscan, UCLA and University of Virginia.
She is a regular commentator on national television and radio networks including the BBC, EWTN, and FOX News and the author of four books; Necessary Noise: How Donald Trump Inflames the Culture War and Why This Is Good News for America (2019); Uncle Sam's Plantation: How Big Government Enslaves America's Poor and What We Can Do About It (2003/2012), White Ghetto: How Middle-Class
America Reflects Inner City Decay (2006), Pimps, Whores and Welfare Brats: From Welfare Cheat to Conservative Messenger (1997).