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Alfred Sharpton, Jr., is a minister of the Pentecostal Church with no fixed parish. The Pentecostal Church is an evangelical Protestant movement that emphasizes glossolalia, or speaking in tongues. It was founded in 1901 and has approximately 10 million members in the United States. Pentecostal sermons are noted for their fervor. Sharpton started on his path to religious piety at a young age. An active member of the church since the tender age of 4, the Brooklyn native was dubbed a "wonder boy," taking to the pulpit at a young age and being ordained at 10. In 1964, the youthful minister shared the spotlight with famed gospel singer Mahalia Jackson. However, that
same year, his family's fortune took a downturn, and his parents' divorce took him from the comfortable middle-class environs of Queens to the housing projects of Brooklyn. It was in that difficult transition the precocious boy realized the harsh economic reality facing many African-Americans and decided to dedicate his life to the cause of civil rights. The former child star attained national prominence in the 1980s as a result of his involvement with several racially charged incidents. He's now running for president.
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