Jussie Smollett: His Birth Order Unmasks Him

           

                                 Jussie Smollett

Jussie Smollett is an openly gay actor, photographer 

and singer. He is a cast member of the show “Empire” 

where he plays the character Jamal Lyon. In March of 

2019 he was charged with faking a hate crime in 

Chicago. His case was dropped by the Cook County 

State’s prosecutor further complicating the issue. A 

look at his birth order will unmask his personality and 

try to make sense of it all.

The Family

His father, Joel Smollett immigrated from Russia and 

worked as a cable splicer. He married Janet Smollett an 

African American. Together they had six children. Jojo 

in 1977, Jazz in 1980, Justin “Jussie” in 1982, Jurnee in 

1986, Jake in 1989 and Jocqui in 1994.  All have been 

successful in the entertainment industry. Working as 

models, actors, and musicians. In addition, the children 

have made many commercials.  Their parents understood 

the pressures the kids would face being biracial and tried 

to prepare them for their adult lives. The young family 

moved from New York to Los Angeles to find more 

opportunities for their children.

Acting and Activism

Jussie’s parents met in the San Francisco Bay area in the 

60’s where they were campaigning for civil rights, 

working closely with the Black Panthers. Many of the 

friends they made during this period are still friends 

today. They instilled this activism in their children who 

have worked for HIV/Aids prevention, the ending of 

apartheid in South Africa, the Black Lives Matter 

movement, and artists for a New South Africa. Jussie’s 

sister worked in both of Obama’s presidential campaigns 

in 2008 and 2012. On Twitter Jussie has 1.3 million 

followers hearing his political view point.

Jussie a Third born

In this family of six Jussie is the Third born. The Third 

born is the child that is acutely aware of all the relationships 

between everyone in the family. They are hyper sensitive 

children but will not let others see that side. They are 

laughing on the outside but crying on the inside. When 

under a lot of pressure this is not a good combination for 

they appear that they are in no need of help. The Third born 

is a gentle soul. His co-workers describe his collaborative 

nature, warm demeanor and good work ethic. We get another 

view in an interview with Billboard, Jussie said, “I don’t 

believe in happiness because I feel like happiness is an 

emotion that can be taken away.” Debbie Allen said, “He’s a 

good guy but he’s also an actor, and actors sometimes crave 

attention, and that comes out in weird ways.”

The Third Born is Open to New Ideas

If there is one characteristic that Third borns have in 

common is that they are open to new ideas and are 

willing to try things other birth orders would not. He 

sees his gay life style as nothing to hide. He told Ellen 

DeGeneres in 2015 that he has never been in the closet.  

 “My mama knows; my mama likes me a lot.” “Honestly, 

we’re humans and we love and we do all that good stuff…

” Third borns open minds are at risk for drug 

experimentation and alcohol abuse. So far this has not 

been part of Jussie’s life.

Third Borns Save the World

Another characteristic of the Third born is their view 

of the world. They want to make it better for everyone. 

Jussie’s parents certainly showed him that the world was 

bigger than just the family. As a Third born he would 

want to “save” the world and make big changes. This 

may have been the reason he staged the hate crime. 

Others see his actions differently. Tarana Burke said 

“My heart breaks even more if Smollett faked his own 

attack because of the intersectionality of who he is as a 

person. 

Final Outcome Unfolding

Jussie has yet to admit he staged the hate crime. The city

of Chicago gave him a bill for $130,000 and 15 cents. He 

has refused to pay. A group of suburban Chicago police 

chiefs are calling for Cook County State’s Attorney Kim 

Foxx to resign. Her office dropped all 16 felony counts 

against him. A civil lawsuit is sure to follow.

Update 2-11-2020 
Today Jussie was indicted on charges of lying to police.  
He now faces six counts of disorderly conduct. #Jussie Smollett

 

Update 3-11-2022

Jussie was found guilty on 12-9-2022 of a staged anti-gay racist 

attack. He was sentenced today to 30 months of probation and 150 

days in jail. He was ordered to pay the court $145,000 dollars. When 

leaving the courtroom he yelled that he was innocent and not suicidal. 

All of these actions are in keeping with his birth order.  In his mind 

as a #3 he really believes his story.  

You can find more information about birth orders in my 

book Life’s Fingerprint How Birth Order Affects Your 

Path Throughout Life by Dr. Robert V.V. Hurst. You can 

also find more information on my website 

www.mybirthorder.com. The book is also available in 

audio from Audible. We have a limited number of Free 

copies. If you contact me through the website, I will send 

you the download code.