Stephen Chukumba is a man who fully understands the challenges faced by the LGBTQ community, thanks to his transformative experience as a parent to a transgender child. As a black individual of African descent, his views on gender and gender identity underwent a seismic shift in 2017, when his then 10-year-old son came out as trans.
Since then, he has been on a lifelong mission to create awareness and fight for the rights of LGBTQ members of our communities.
In this biographical article, we take a look at Stephen’s personal journey, from early childhood to his meteoric rise as an activist, while also covering other important aspects of his life such as his age, wife, ethnicity, education, net worth, and much more.
Stephen Chukumba Biography
Stephen Chukumba is a man of many talents. He is a speaker, entrepreneur, activist, writer, producer, and attorney with a background in engineering and economics.
He is popularly known for creating awareness, advocating for the rights of the LGBTQ+ community and for appearing on the Netflix documentary about Trans-parenting The Dads.
A seasoned attorney and entrepreneur, Stephen currently serves as a senior manager at Capital One and is the founder of Taller Brand, LLC, an online-based retailer company that mainly focuses on growing brands in e-commerce marketplaces.
As a writer and producer, he is credited with working on a number of shows, documentaries, and films like The Manager, Black Market Green: The Whitewashing of the Marijuana Industry, and Intergalactic Combat (2007).
Stephen Chukumba Wikipedia
Early life and education
Chukumba was born in Washington, DC, but was raised in New Jersey. Growing up in an African-American household with an African-American Studies Professor as a father, he was often exposed to the struggles, contributions, and triumphs of the African-American community.
This early exposure developed a strong cultural identity and commitment to social justice and equality in Chukumba and played an important role in igniting his love for advocacy and positive social change. He had a completely normal and eventful childhood.
When it comes to his education, Stephen is an alumni of the College of New Jersey, where he pursued a course in engineering. He holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agricultural and Business Economics and got his JD in Law from Seton Hall University School of Law.
During his college days, he was an active member of the NJPIRG, the National Black Law Students Association, and a member of the prestigious Alpha Phi Alpha club.
Career
Stephen started out his career working as a Director of Business and Legal Affairs at Digiwaxx, LLC, in 1998, a position he held for nearly 8 years. In 2000, while still working at Digiwaxx, he co-founded his own intellectual property law firm, Chukmba & Cook, LLC, where he served as the firm’s managing partner and would offer legal counsel to internet, entertainment, and technology clients.
The firm was active for 5 years and was eventually disbanded in 2005. In June of 2006, after spending 7 years at Digiwaxx, he joined Marksmen Productions, Inc. as the Director of Product Development and went on to spend 2 years at the company before moving on to MX Telecom, Inc. in New York.
At MX Telecom, Inc., Stephen served as the company’s Business Development Manager. In 2009, he quit his job at Mx Telecom and moved to San Francisco, California, where he worked as a mobile project manager at FonLabs, LLC.
He worked at FonLabs, LLC, for 16 months before moving back to New York to work as a director and mobile product manager at KiwiTech. His commitment to his craft, hard work, and expertise saw him catch the attention of various high-end companies, and in 2012 he was offered a job at UsableNet.
While he was initially employed as a senior product/project manager, he quickly worked his way up, and by the time he was leaving the company in 2017, he had been named Associate Team Lead of Project Management.
He started his own e-commerce marketing and branding company, Taller Brand, LLC, in 2015 while still at UsableNet and quit his job in 2017 to focus on the growth of the company. In August of 2018, he started working at Capital One as a manager and Scrum Master, and in 2021, he was promoted to Senior Manager, Agile Delivery Lead, a position he has held to date.
TV Career and The Dad
From a young age, Stephen Chukumba had always been passionate about film and film production. He believed that he could make an impact on the world through film and also use it as a means of expression. In 2007, he made his debut in the film industry, working as production security for the crew of the Intergalactic Combat crew.
Since then, he has been involved in the production of the documentary Black Market Green: The Whitewashing of the Marijuana Industry and the TV show The Manager.
In November 2023, he made his on-screen debut alongside Peter Metz, Jose Trujillo, Frank Gonzales, and Wayne Maines on the highly anticipated Netflix documentary The Dads.
The documentary mainly followed Stephen and four other dads with transgender kids as they hung out with Dennis Shepard and tackled the various issues they and their kids faced in the community while also expressing their love and support for their kids.
Stephen Chukumba Age, Birthday
Stephen is 53 years old. He was born on April 21, 1970, in Washington D.C, and his Zodiac Sign is Taurus. He often celebrates his birthday in the Company of his three Kids.
Stephen Chukumba Height
Standing at a height of 5 feet 11 inches (EST), Stephen possesses a well-built and chiseled body that complements his height, making him a magnificent sight to look at. His short and well-groomed hair and beard are among his most noticeable features.
Stephen Chukumba Family
Stephen was born into a Nigerian immigrant family in the United States. His parents, Dr. Stephen Chukumba Sr. and Bridget Chukumba were both born and raised in Nigeria but moved to the United States in 1967. His father initially worked as a diplomat before becoming a professor.
Dr. Chukumba taught African-American Studies at the College of New Jersey. He has two known siblings: a brother named Justin and a sister who graduated from Harvard in 1990.
Stephen Chukumba Ethnicity and Nationality
Chukumba is of Nigerian–American ethnicity and can trace his roots to the Igbo tribe in Nigeria. He embraces his West African heritage with a lot of pride and finds a lot of fulfillment while partaking in his people’s ways, cultures, and ways of life.
He holds Nigerian-American citizenship.
Stephen Chukumba Wife
Stephen’s wife, Chanel Cook Chukumba, sadly passed away in October 2016. The pair had been married for over 16 years and lived in Montclair, New Jersey, with their four kids. They had met sometime in the late 1990’s and deeply fell in love. They courted for a few years before going on to tie the knot in a wedding ceremony held on July 1, 2000.
Chukumba and his wife had enjoyed a happy marriage that was characterized by undying love, support, and trust in each other. Chanel is survived by her husband, four children, her mother, Mildred Madelyn Cook, and her sister, Kimberly Ann Cook.
Stephen Chukumba Children
Chukumba and his wife have four children together, namely Stephen Curtis Chima, Nokosi Fuji Dike, Duran Eve Nwakaego, and Asha Ming Adachi Nkemka. His thirdborn Duran Eve Nwakaego, transitioned when he was 10 years old, and Steve has been very supportive of his son’s journey.
Duran is now 16 years old and will soon graduate from high school. Since transitioning, he has led a happy life that is characterized by a sense of self-discovery and self-acceptance, as well as an alignment with his true identity. In 2023, he appeared alongside his father Steve on the Netflix documentary, The DADS.
Stephen Chukumba Net Worth
Chukumba is a wealthy man with diverse streams of income. Over the years, he has been able to accumulate a decent amount of assets and build businesses that have helped him lead a comfortable lifestyle. His net worth is over $400,000.
Social Media
Please take a moment to read this article. And if you know anyone raising or supporting LGBTQ+ children, please share this life-saving resource. #protecttransyouth #advocacysontstop #thedads
Raising Black LGBTQ+ Children https://t.co/yQuJUKyha4 via @HRC
— Stephen Chukumba (@stephenchukumba) March 24, 2023
