Queen Latifah

---
name: "Queen Latifah"
relatedPeople:
  - "jamie-foxx"
  - "kelly-rowland"
  - "janet-jackson"
  - "ashlee-simpson"
date: "2013-01-29"
sources:
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah Discusses God, Jesus, Rap, and Her New Movie, 'Last Holiday.'"
    sourceUrl: "http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Movies/2006/01/It-Was-Just-A-Gang-For-God.aspx"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah's Aha! Moment."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Queen-Latifahs-Aha-Moment"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah: 'Joyful Noise' Role Brings Her Closer to God."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.theboombox.com/2012/01/04/queen-latifah-joyful-noise/"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah Discusses God, Jesus, Rap, and Her New Movie, 'Last Holiday.'"
    sourceUrl: "http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Movies/2006/01/It-Was-Just-A-Gang-For-God.aspx?p=2"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah shows her support for President-elect Barack Obama."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.buddytv.com/queen-latifah/photos/queen-latifah-shows-her-support-for-president-elect-barack-obama-54713.aspx"
  - sourceTitle: "Vote for Change: Queen Latifah (Obama, 2008)."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdeSDvjTg24"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah's Federal Campaign Contribution Report."
    sourceUrl: "http://68.234.14.2/celebrity_political_donations/Queen_Latifah.php"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah on Publicly Coming Out: 'It's Just Not Gonna Happen.'"
    sourceUrl: "http://www.clutchmagonline.com/2012/06/queen-latifah-on-publicly-coming-out-its-just-not-gonna-happen/"
  - sourceTitle: "Queen Latifah: On Gay Marriage."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.gaymarriagehq.com/queen-latifah-on-gay-marriage-74/"
  - sourceTitle: "10 Questions for Queen Latifah."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1851113,00.html"
  - sourceTitle: "U.N.I.T.Y. Lyrics – Queen Latifah."
    sourceUrl: "http://www.lyricsfreak.com/q/queen+latifah/unity_20801548.html"
summaries:
  religion: "Queen Latifah was raised in the Baptist church, but is now a devout non-denominational Christian."
  politicalViews: "She is a liberal Democrat and a feminist."
---

Queen Latifah, whose real name is Dana Owens, was born in Newark, New Jersey and raised mostly in East Orange, New Jersey.

Queen Latifah was raised Baptist,<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.beliefnet.com%2FEntertainment%2FMovies%2F2006%2F01%2FIt-Was-Just-A-Gang-For-God.aspx" title="Queen Latifah Discusses God, Jesus, Rap, and Her New Movie, &apos;Last Holiday.&apos;">[1]</a> went to a Catholic school growing up,<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.oprah.com%2Fspirit%2FQueen-Latifahs-Aha-Moment" title="Queen Latifah&apos;s Aha! Moment.">[2]</a> and now considers herself a non-denominational Christian.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.beliefnet.com%2FEntertainment%2FMovies%2F2006%2F01%2FIt-Was-Just-A-Gang-For-God.aspx" title="Queen Latifah Discusses God, Jesus, Rap, and Her New Movie, &apos;Last Holiday.&apos;">[3]</a> She said that while she was growing up, church and Bible school were "requirements" and that her early connection to God caused her to never feel like she was alone.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.theboombox.com%2F2012%2F01%2F04%2Fqueen-latifah-joyful-noise%2F" title="Queen Latifah: &apos;Joyful Noise&apos; Role Brings Her Closer to God.">[4]</a>

She said she believes in "divine design," that everything happens for a reason. Talking about her brother's death in a motorcycle accident when he was only 24, she said,

>I always leave open that things happen for a reason, and I don't understand that reason always, but it's something I have to accept. . . . I really believe that God had his hands on me the whole time, and my family as well.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.beliefnet.com%2FEntertainment%2FMovies%2F2006%2F01%2FIt-Was-Just-A-Gang-For-God.aspx" title="Queen Latifah Discusses God, Jesus, Rap, and Her New Movie, &apos;Last Holiday.&apos;">[5]</a>

Her relationship with God is very personal and seems to be with her constantly, like a close companion. She said,

>Sometimes I pray when I really feel like I need God to help me with something, and sometimes we just have conversations. We just kick it. God is my homeboy. Jesus is my homeboy.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.beliefnet.com%2FEntertainment%2FMovies%2F2006%2F01%2FIt-Was-Just-A-Gang-For-God.aspx%3Fp%3D2" title="Queen Latifah Discusses God, Jesus, Rap, and Her New Movie, &apos;Last Holiday.&apos;">[6]</a>

## 

## All Hail the Queen

Queen Latifah is a Democrat and an Obama-supporter,<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.buddytv.com%2Fqueen-latifah%2Fphotos%2Fqueen-latifah-shows-her-support-for-president-elect-barack-obama-54713.aspx" title="Queen Latifah shows her support for President-elect Barack Obama.">[7]</a> even appearing in an ad for the president in 2008.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DWdeSDvjTg24" title="Vote for Change: Queen Latifah (Obama, 2008).">[8]</a> And her only campaign contribution on record was to a Democrat.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2F68.234.14.2%2Fcelebrity_political_donations%2FQueen_Latifah.php" title="Queen Latifah&apos;s Federal Campaign Contribution Report.">[9]</a>

She supports the gay rights movement, and even though there's all sorts of speculation about Latifah's own sexuality,she says that the matter is not up for public discussion.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.clutchmagonline.com%2F2012%2F06%2Fqueen-latifah-on-publicly-coming-out-its-just-not-gonna-happen%2F" title="Queen Latifah on Publicly Coming Out: &apos;It&apos;s Just Not Gonna Happen.">[10]</a> She has performed at gay pride events,<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.clutchmagonline.com%2F2012%2F06%2Fqueen-latifah-on-publicly-coming-out-its-just-not-gonna-happen%2F" title="Queen Latifah on Publicly Coming Out: &apos;It&apos;s Just Not Gonna Happen.&apos;">[11]</a> and although she doesn't think unions among gay couples should be called "marriage," she supports equal rights:

>I don't think that it should be called marriage. But the idea of it is the same, and you should have the same quality of rights that a married person has. People think of marriage as something that is between a man and a woman, because it was created by God. Well, let God handle the judgment, too. You stay out of it.<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gaymarriagehq.com%2Fqueen-latifah-on-gay-marriage-74%2F" title="Queen Latifah: On Gay Marriage.">[12]</a>

Queen Latifah, from her role as a woman in hip hop in its early days, has been associated with feminism from the beginning. She is a role model to bigger women who don't fit the skinny Hollywood stereotype,<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.time.com%2Ftime%2Fmagazine%2Farticle%2F0%2C9171%2C1851113%2C00.html" title="10 Questions for Queen Latifah.">[13]</a> and her lyrics protest anything less than equality for women. In her song "U.N.I.T.Y." she raps,

>Everytime I hear a brother call a girl a bitch or a hoe/ Trying to make a sister feel low/ You know all of that gots to go<a class="source-citation" href="#http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lyricsfreak.com%2Fq%2Fqueen%2Blatifah%2Funity_20801548.html" title="U.N.I.T.Y. Lyrics – Queen Latifah.">[14]</a>

Aspiring business-women, actresses, singers, and rappers of any color, body-type or sexuality, can certainly find a role model in the Queen.

Fact about the Religious Beliefs of Queen Latifah

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