Van Jones

American environmental advocate and civil rights activist · United States · On the map · Activists · Born 1968 · age 58

A lawyer who went from Obama's green jobs advisor to CNN's most unexpectedly emotional election-night commentator, Jones built a career toggling between criminal justice reform, tech equity, and the kind of on-air vulnerability that made him a meme in 2020.

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33 times the usual readers on 4 November. 10,796 readers on 4 November, against about 330 a day before the rise.

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A life in dates

2020“Bernie's particular brand of socialism is probably better described as 'grandparent envy.”In their words7 March 2020On Real Time with Bill MaherRead the whole statement

2008“The green economy should not just be about reclaiming throw-away stuff. It should be about reclaiming thrown-away communities.”In their wordsThe Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (2008)Read the whole statement

“We need a much deeper understanding of exactly what it is our industrial society, in its present creation, is jeopardizing. We need a more profound perception of what is at stake.”In their wordsThe Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (2008)Read the whole statement

“The time has come to move beyond eco-elitism to eco-populism.”In their wordsThe Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (2008)Read the whole statement

“To change our laws and culture, the green movement must attract and include the majority of all people, not just the majority of affluent people.”In their wordsThe Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (2008)Read the whole statement

2003“The end of the occupation. The right of return of the Palestinian people. These are critical dividing lines in human rights. We have to be here.”In their wordsWartimes : Reports From The Opposition (2003) a CD financed, produced and featuring the voice of Jones, as quoted at "Cool... But, Yes,Read the whole statement

1998Reebok Human Rights AwardAward1968Born20 September 1968

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Media & music

Photos 4

Jones meets with then-mayor of San Francisco Gavin Newsom at a book signing for The Green Collar Economy, October 14, 2008.

Jones speaking at Power Shift 2011, an annual youth summit, in Washington, D.C., on April 15, 2011

Jones was a longtime friend and associate of American musician Prince. Jones often cites Prince as the reason he wears a purple tie during TV appearances.[93]

In their own words 4

Van Jones

4 statements, newest first

The human family has invaluable friends and irreplaceable allies in the plant and animal worlds.
2008 · The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (2008), Own words
A green economy begins to replace some of the clunking and chugging of ugly machines with the wise effort of beautiful, skilled people. That means more jobs.
2008 · The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems (2008), Own words
If the road to social transformation can be paved only by saints who never make mistakes, the road will never be built.
2007 · Statement in a 2007 New York Times interview, quoted in "Bridging the gap between environmental and social justice" by Lauren Rabaino, in, Own words

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Awards

Reebok Human Rights Award1998

About this person

Born September 20, 1968, Anthony Kapel Jones came up through civil rights work, founding the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights and co-founding Color of Change before the Obama administration tapped him as Special Advisor for Green Jobs in 2009. That stint was brief, but it seeded his next chapter: he wrote "The Green Collar Economy," landed at Princeton as a visiting fellow in 2010, and launched Dream.Org (originally The Dream Corps), a social justice accelerator running initiatives on criminal justice, tech access, and environmental equity. By the mid-2010s he'd moved into media, co-hosting CNN's "Crossfire" revival and later "The Messy Truth," "The Van Jones Show," and "The Redemption Project" - all while racking up three New York Times bestsellers, an Emmy for a VR project, and a WEBBY. He also served as CEO of the REFORM Alliance, the criminal-justice initiative Jay-Z and Meek Mill founded, and spent years advising Prince before the musician's death. The Green jobs dreamer became the guy crying on election night, and somehow both felt true.

Country

United States