Born in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, in 1940[1] or 1941,[3] Wilson completed his undergraduate degree at the Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia, master’s degree at The New School of Social Research, and attained a PhD degree from Fordham University in New York.[1][2] Wilson worked as a psychologist, social caseworker, supervising probation officer and as a training administrator in the New York City Department of Juvenile Justice. As an academic, Wilson also taught at City University of New York from 1981 to 1986 and at the College of New Rochelle from 1987 to 1995