Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr. is an American retired neurosurgeon, academic, author, and government official. He served as the 17th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump.

A pioneer in neurosurgery, Carson gained fame in 1987 after leading a team in the first-known separation of conjoined twins joined at the back of the head. He also performed the first successful neurosurgical procedure on a fetus inside the womb, developed new methods to treat brain-stem tumors, and revitalized hemispherectomy techniques for controlling seizures. Carson retired from medicine in 2013, having been a professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

In politics, after delivering a speech at the 2013 National Prayer Breakfast critical of President Obama, Carson gained fame among conservatives. He ran for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination and later endorsed Donald Trump, who nominated him as HUD Secretary.

Carson's honors include over 70 honorary doctorates, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008, and being elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2010. His life story was depicted in the 2009 film "Gifted Hands", where he was portrayed by Cuba Gooding Jr.