MANdatory Awareness: Cornelius J. Maxwell

Cornelius J. Maxwell is an Iraq War Veteran, Advocate, 2021 Academy Award Finalist, Public Speaker, and Author. Still, under the age of 40, this young man is very accomplished. 

Mr. Maxwell served in the United States Army from 2004-2012 as a Communications Sergeant. During his Army tenure, he would serve our great nation with three combat tours during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Also known as the second Iraq War. 

After serving in the Army, Cornelius would earn his Associates in Occupational Studies from the Universal Technical Institute (UTI) in Automotive Technology. While at UTI, Cornelius served as the Student Council President. He also earned his Bachelor of Science in Political Science from the University of Houston Downtown. With honor, Cornelius would attend an Executive Master of Business Administration (MBA) Fellowship in Entrepreneurship at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA). He still has a year left in his MBA program in Project Management. 

While working as the General Director for his mother International Showcase winner Lorna René (Maxwell), Cornelius gave his famous “Transition Units Theory Speech” during the Lorna René Honor Our Heroes Art Exhibition and Award Ceremony II. Their goal is to dedicate her art to honor veterans from her perspective as a wife of a retired veteran and mother of two Iraq War veterans. This event took place at the Oklahoma State Capitol as the event that honored veterans during the Veterans Day week, while Oklahoma was celebrating its 100th Anniversary as a US state. 

Mr. Maxwell later presented his vision of the Transition Units Theory in front of the Arizona House Military and Veterans Affairs Committee. He plans to save two million veterans’ lives over ten years from PTSD, suicide, homelessness, unemployment and help veterans get their benefits quicker. The Committee loved it so much they asked him to write a bill for it, which he did. Cornelius started a petition online with Change.org and has been nominated as a Finalist from the Academy of the United States Veterans for the Transition Units Theory in Leadership. Please vote for the Transition Units Theory because public voting is going on until March 1, 2021. 

On June 19, 2020, Maxwell put his Political Science background on the line by publishing a poetry book titled Unapologetically: I Am A Man. Inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. the last protest, Cornelius wrote the poem “Unapologetically: I Am A Man” which led to him writing the rest of the book. Within the first two weeks of release, the book had ranked on Amazon’s Top 100 in 4 categories and recently has ranked on Amazon Top 100 in a 5th category. This book is designed to plant the seeds to end racism in America. Cornelius is currently educating the public about his 5-phase plan to uplift the black community in America on a level never seen before. 

Cornelius J. Maxwell often self-quotes his definition of leadership “Leaders seek opportunities to serve others and lack the expectation for others to serve them.” This young man has completely dedicated his life to serving others because he believes it’s his divine purpose and destiny to do so.   

 

Christina: What is your Swagger? What makes Cornelius, Cornelius? 

Cornelius: I’m a son of the most high and know I can do all things by exercising my faith. I’m at a point in my life where I’m starting to embrace and understand the anointing of my destiny. 

Christina: What was it like when you served in the Army? Have you always wanted to be a soldier, or was it something you stumbled into?

Cornelius: My father served in the Army. I knew it was something I had to do, even though many of my friends and family tried to talk me out of it. It has turned out to place a huge part of my legacy. During my tenure in the Army, I served three combat tours in Iraq. I learned so much about myself, politics, people, birthrights, and my anointed destiny. 

Christina: Tell our readers about your poetry book, “Unapologetically: I Am A Man.” What inspired you to write this book? 

Cornelius: I was inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s last protest, “I Am A Man.” So, I started researching why is it so important to isolate the black man from the family structure. Which leads to my 5-phase plan for America to see black people as people with a birthright since we are the only ones who don’t have one.

My 5-phase plan consists of the following:

1. Political Influence: The black community has never had fair representation politically. Thus, creating a source of influence, we never had before. We can create an agenda and leverage this agenda through both all parties since the black vote is the deciding vote. We can attend events that are free for the community regardless of party.  
2. Economic Stability: It’s been proven the black community can establish economic stability through the examples of Tulsa, OK, and Rosewood, FL. We can build economic stability with the backing of political influence. We can create more SBA programs for small businesses in black communities to help them scale their business. By scaling their business, then we are creating more dollars in the black community, and we are creating more taxpayers, which increases the national GDP. The increase in GDP will increase the value of the American dollar, and this is sound economics. 
3. Education & Healthcare: These are usually paid for by taxpayers in the community. By creating more taxpayers in black communities, we can determine the quality of education and healthcare in our communities. Again, this is sound economics because the school districts and doctors will make more money. Education and health are two key factors to building wealth. 
4. Home & Land Ownership: By owning businesses in the black community, people tend to live near their job. Thus, the black community will be able to own their homes and land because they have taxable income and qualify for home & land ownership. 
5. Birthrights: Most people view birthrights as an inheritance of money, cars, and items. Birthrights are deeper than that. They are the identity of an individual based upon their forefathers’ legacy, and birthrights are also political. Thus, my plan creates the American dream of every man being in a position to establish a birthright for their heirs based upon political influence, business ownership, and job stability, quality education and healthcare system, and home & land ownership, which needs to be the identity of every man in America. This is why it’s so important for white supremacy to remove the black man from the family structure because by doing so, you remove everything I mentioned in my 5-phase plan. 

Christina: Did you expect your poetry book to be such a success after it was released? How did you feel once you saw how it had ranked on Amazon’s Top 100 list in four different categories? 

Cornelius: Personally, everything came together on divine timing. This is my first book, and I had no idea how to put a book together. God put all the right places at the right time. We recently reached Amazon’s top 100 in a 5th category, Black & African American Poetry Gift Ideas. Plus, the book has been nominated for Book of the Year by Online Book Club. I see it all as a blessing and most humbling experience because I prayed that this book would inspire lives. I’m honored that the mission of Unapologetically: I Am A Man is doing just that. Inspiring people! 

Christina: What is a day in your life like?

Cornelius: I’m extremely productive. I do public speaking about the difference between being busy vs. being productive. Every day I’m a student and learning more about my life, purpose, legacy, destiny, and how they are all aligned to please God. 

Christina: Tell us about this quote that you often say: “Leaders seek opportunities to serve others and lack the expectation for others to serve them.” What does this mean to you? 

Cornelius: I look at leaders as servants. The greatest leaders are all servants and have mastered the art of servitude. Leaders seek to serve and not seek power. There is a major difference between the two. Once we learn the value of service, we learn what a leader brings to the table. 

Christina: Please tell us about your Transition Units Theory. Where can people go to support?

Cornelius: The Transition Units Theory is currently being nominated for a 2021 Academy Award for Leadership by the Academy of the United States Veterans. Please go to their website and vote for the TRANSITION UNITS THEORY. I gave the introduction speech at the Honor Our Heroes Art Exhibition and Award Ceremony, located at the Oklahoma State Capitol during their 100th anniversary as a US state. A battle buddy of mine recorded the speech and put it on Facebook. Thus, leading me to present the Transition Units Theory in front of Congress, I have a petition on change.org and wrote a bill for it. I was able to analyze a Department of Defense Report and show that the Transition Units Theory can save the lives of 2 Million veterans as they transition out of the military. 

Christina: If you could pick one thing you had to advocate for and focus on for the rest of your life, what would it be and why? 

Cornelius: I view advocacy as a service, and where there is a need, there needs to be a champion. The one thing I can advocate for is seeking a need to improve and inspire others’ lives that may leave an impact for generations to come. 

Christina: Do you have any upcoming events or projects you would like our readers to know about?

Cornelius: I’m currently working on putting together a book tour and seeking for ways to inspire others. As a guest on a podcast, tv show, and various forms of media, you can find me spreading inspiration to others. 

Christina: Is there anything else you would like to share?

Cornelius: Christina, thank you for interviewing me. I truly appreciate your support! It is an honor and a privilege to share with your audience, and I hope they are blessed beyond measure by this interview. Most importantly, please purchase Unapologetically: I Am A Man, vote for Unapologetically: I Am A Man for Book of the Year, and vote for the Transition Units Theory for the 2021 Academy Award for Leadership. 

I will like to end this interview by sharing one of my poems titled “I’ve Been Told By Society” on page 28 of Unapologetically: I Am A Man with you all. 

I’ve Been Told By Society 

Freedom will always elude 

Prosperity will not embrace me 

The war on drugs will enslave me 

Prison is my destiny 

Death at a young age is my prophecy 

Not able to provide for my family 

Is the way that I’m cursed generationally

To be a pillar in society 

Is not even a possibility 

These quotes my whole life I’ve been told continuously

But I can’t understand what I’ve been told conceptually 

God’s favor is blessing me eternally 

Can’t measure my growth infinitely 

To defy the odds stacked against me perpetually  

 

Connect with Cornelius below:

Website: www.mr-maxwell.com

Instagram:@poetic_man27

Facebook: @MrCorneliusJMaxwell

LinkedIn: Cornelius J. Maxwell (I will appear in the search) use email info@mr-maxwell.com to connect with me on LinkedIn. I will be honored to speak with you.