--- ---  # Al Sharpton Turns 60 by [TIME Photo](https://time.com/author/time-photo/) ## TIME Photo Oct 3, 2014 11:00 AM UTC  From left: Aisha McShaw, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio (rear), and Reverend Al Sharpton celebrate Al Sharpton's 60th birthday at the Four Seasons Hotel New York City on Oct. 1, 2014. From left: Aisha McShaw, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio (rear), and Reverend Al Sharpton celebrate Al Sharpton's 60th birthday at the Four Seasons Hotel New York City on Oct. 1, 2014.Johnny Nunez—WireImage/Getty Images by [TIME Photo](https://time.com/author/time-photo/) ## TIME Photo Oct 3, 2014 11:00 AM UTC  As a future American religious leader and civil rights activist, seven-year-old Al Sharpton preaches from a pulpit at Washington Temple in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, 1961. New York Times/Getty Images  The Rev. Al Sharpton is arrested during an anti-racism demonstration at La Guardia Airport in New York City on Jan. 27, 1987. New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  American religious leader and civil rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton speaks through a megaphone as he leads a protest march near La Guardia airport in New York City on Jan. 27, 1988. New York Times/Getty Images  From left: Tawana Brawley, the Rev. Al Sharpton, and Glenda Brawley are handcuffed to one another as they prepare to leave church for a bus trip to Democratic Convention in Atlanta, July 16, 1988. Dan Cronin—New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  The Rev. Al Sharpton celebrates sentencing of Joey Fama and Keith Mondello for the murder of Yusef Hawkins outside a Brooklyn Court in New York City, June 11, 1990. Gerald Herbert—New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  From left: Diana Brown, daughter of James Brown, James Brown and Al Sharpton at ribbon cutting ceremony for Sharpton's senate race in New York City on Feb. 26, 1992. Willie Anderson—New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  The Rev. William A. Jones, right, of the Bethany Baptist Church in Brooklyn re-baptizes the Rev. Al Sharpton in New York City on Feb. 6, 1994. Kevin Larkin—AP  The Rev. Al Sharpton announces his candidacy for mayor in Harlem, New York City, Jan. 20, 1997. Bill Turnbull—New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  The Rev. Al Sharpton joins black demonstrators marching in protest after days of rioting in Crown Heights, Brooklyn after two black 7-year-olds, Gavin and Angela Cato, were hit by a car driven by a member of the Hasidic Jewish community, New York City, 2000. New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  Rev. Al Sharpton (right) and Rev. Herbert Daughtry (second from right) hold hands with fellow protesters during a prayer vigil outside of the Albany County Courthouse for Amadou Diallo, Feb. 2, 2000. David Handschuh—New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images  The Reverend Al Sharpton, left, and activist Dick Gregory attend a rally in Dearborn, Mich. on July 5, 2000. Bill Pugliano—Getty Images  Musician Michael Jackson (R) stands with Rev. Al Sharpton at Sharpton's National Action Network headquarters in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City on July 6, 2002. Doug Kanter—AFP/Getty Images  Senator John Kerry, the Reverend Al Sharpton, and Teresa Heinz Kerry celebrate Kerry's nomination for Democratic Presidential candidate onstage during the Democratic National Convention in Boston on July 29, 2004. Mark Wilson—Getty Images  Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson during the Millions More Movement Launch in Washington on Oct. 15, 2005. Johnny Nunez—WireImage/Getty Images  Jimmy Fallon as police officer, Tracy Morgan as Balthazar, Reverend Al Sharpton as Melchior, Kenan Thompson as Caspar during the "Three Wise Men" skit on Saturday Night Live, Dec. 6, 2008 NBC/Getty Images  The Rev. Al Sharpton (C), president and founder of the National Action Network, departs the White House following a meeting with President Barack Obama in Washington on Feb. 10, 2010. Yuri Gripas—AFP/Getty Images  The Reverend Al Sharpton joins Occupy Wall Street protesters at Zuccotti Park in New York City on Oct. 10, 2011. Spencer Platt—Getty Images  Rev. Al Sharpton departs a rally for slain teenager Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla. on March 22, 2012. Mario Tama—Getty Images  Civil rights leader Rev. Al Sharpton speaks about the killing of teenager Michael Brown at a press conference held on the steps of the old courthouse in St. Louis on Aug. 12, 2014. Scott Olson—Getty Images  From left: Aisha McShaw, NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio (rear), and Reverend Al Sharpton celebrate Al Sharpton's 60th birthday at the Four Seasons Hotel New York City on Oct. 1, 2014. Johnny Nunez—WireImage/Getty Images See Al Sharpton's Life in Pictures on his 60th Birthday ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3456966/al-sharpton-photos/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3456966/al-sharpton-photos/"},"headline":"Al Sharpton Turns 60","datePublished":"2014-10-03T11:00:56.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:07:34.812Z","description":"From the time he preached his first sermon at age four, Sharpton has spent a career on the pulpit and in the spotlight","url":"https://time.com/3456966/al-sharpton-photos/","keywords":["New York City","Birthday","Civil Rights","People"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt634f274e8f04b091/6986a6af13c79f976619433b/al-sharpton-birthday.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME Photo","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/time-photo/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt634f274e8f04b091/6986a6af13c79f976619433b/al-sharpton-birthday.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Al Sharpton's 60th Birthday Celebration","caption":"Al Sharpton's 60th Birthday Celebration","creditText":"Johnny Nunez—WireImage/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3456966/al-sharpton-photos/","name":"Al Sharpton Turns 60"}}]}] ```