Political analyst Soledad O’Brien is currently grieving the loss of both of her parents. Her mother, Estella Marquetti O’Brien, has passed away just 40 days after her father, Edward O’Brien.
O’Brien released a series of photos of her mother on Twitter while sharing a bit of family history with followers, tweeting, “My mom died today. Joining my dad who passed away 40 days ago. She was a pretty remarkable lady. An immigrant from Cuba, she lived with the Oblate Sisters of Providence in Baltimore during college.”
Learn more about O’Brien’s mother below.
She always was sad about leaving Cuba—but hated how Castro had destroyed her country. She went back once to visit—and said—I’ll never go back again. I love this photo. Maybe the early 40s? pic.twitter.com/1HY9TVUaL6
— Soledad O'Brien (@soledadobrien) March 18, 2019
She learned two more languages fluently —English and French, and became an educator. She had a reputation for being super-strict, which made me very popular (not!) since she taught at my high school. pic.twitter.com/ew5GbCzsHi
— Soledad O'Brien (@soledadobrien) March 18, 2019
She was pretty great. Miss you, Mami. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Cnze9OENKQ
— Soledad O'Brien (@soledadobrien) March 18, 2019
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Born and raised in Compton, California, Jessica Bennett began her career as an intern at The Oakland Post, and later, The Source Magazine. She went on to write for respected hip hop publications such as DJ Booth and Hip Hop DX before becoming the Urban Editor of pop culture website, Wetpaint.com. She joined Ebony as the Entertainment Editor August 2017. Bennett has interviewed such names as Vanessa Williams, Spike Lee, Tyra Banks, Forest Whitaker, Magic & Cookie Johnson and several others.