Parker holds an Associate's Degree in Advertising from Los Angeles City College and a Bachelor of Science in Marketing with a minor in International Business from Woodbury University.

Parker is a conservative African American woman who has stated she spent her teen and early adult years as an unemployed mother on welfare. She also has told of being arrested in her teens for shoplifting, and has publicly disclosed the fact that she has had four abortions.

Parker became a Christian and subsequently became a spokesperson for related political issues. She opposes the welfare system, claiming that welfare is similar to an invitation to a government plantation, which creates a situation where those who accept the invitation switch mindsets from "How do I take care of myself?" to "What do I have to do to stay on the plantation?" She claims that stable families and strong moral values are the key to ending poverty. She believes that abortion is wrong and has hurt black families. In 2007, Parker was a guest at the conservative Value Voters Summit and in 2009 was a guest speaker at this same event.

Parker is the founder and president of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education, which was formerly based in Los Angeles, but is currently based in Washington, D.C. She is also a syndicated columnist for Scripps Howard News Service and the author of three books: White Ghetto: How Middle Class America Reflects Inner City Decay (2006), Uncle Sam's Plantation: How Big Government Enslaves America's Poor and What We Can Do About It (2003) and Pimps, Whores and Welfare Brats: From Welfare Cheat to Conservative Messenger (1998).

Parker appeared as co-host on the ABC daytime talk show The View on June 19, 2007. She expressed her opposition to abortion, birth control and same-sex marriage. Parker is currently a speaker for the Clare Boothe Luce Policy Institute's college campus lecture program. On August 27, 2009 Parker appeared with Alaskans for Parental Rights to kick off a statewide signature drive to make teen abortions in Alaska illegal without parental consent

In March 2010, Star Parker announced she is running for Congress. She is running as the Republican candidate in California's 37th congressional district, which encompasses most of Long Beach and Compton, as well as Carson, Signal Hill, and parts of other municipalities. This district is currently represented by Democrat Laura Richardson.