Shirley Kinsey

Shirley Kinsey (née Pooler; born February 7, 1946) is an American philanthropist, art collector, and former school teacher known, along with husband Bernard and son Khalil, as the owner of Kinsey Collection, one of the largest private collections of African-American history and art in the world.

Early life and education Shirley was born to Erma and Eddie Pooler on February 7, 1946, in Lake City, Florida. She attended university at Florida A&M University, where she met Bernard Kinsey, her future husband, following her arrest at a civil rights protest. She graduated with a degree in English in 1967. The couple was married in Tallahassee at the First Baptist Institutional Church, followed by a reception in the faculty lounge at the university. Following graduation she was hired as a teacher with the Compton Unified School District. Realizing they knew little of their own history and culture, the couple began collecting African-American art, literature and manuscripts eventually amassing one of the largest private collections in the world. Their collecting expanded following the birth of their son Khalil as a way of documenting where he came from outside of narratives focused on slavery. The Kinsey family and their collection were featured on Episode 26 of the podcast This Is Love in 2020.