History of Van Jones in Timeline
Van Jones is an American political analyst, media personality, lawyer, author, and civil rights advocate. He's known for his work as a CNN host and contributor, and for his three New York Times bestselling books. Jones is also an Emmy Award winner, highlighting his contributions to media and political discourse.
September 20, 1968: Van Jones's Birth
On September 20, 1968, Anthony Kapel "Van" Jones was born. He became an American political analyst, media personality, lawyer, author, and civil rights advocate.
1983: Misconduct incidents by Marc Andaya
In 1983, officer Marc Andaya had a record of incidents of misconduct.
1986: Graduation from High School
In 1986, Van Jones graduated from Jackson Central-Merry High School in his hometown.
August 1992: Political Radicalization
In August 1992, Van Jones stated that he had become a communist, influenced by the Rodney King case.
1992: Legal Observer
In 1992, Van Jones worked as a legal observer for the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights during protests related to the Rodney King case.
1993: Misconduct incidents by Marc Andaya
Between 1983 and 1993, Marc Andaya was named in 10 complaints, eight of them allegedly for misuse of physical force, when he was a policeman with the Oakland Police Department.
1995: In-custody death of Aaron Williams
In 1995, Aaron Williams, an unarmed black man, died in custody after fighting with several officers, leading to community outrage and pressure on the department to bring justice against officer Marc Andaya.
1995: Initiated Bay Area PoliceWatch Project
In 1995, Van Jones initiated the Bay Area PoliceWatch project with the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights.
1996: Campaign to fire officer Marc Andaya
In 1996, Van Jones and PoliceWatch led a campaign to gain the firing of officer Marc Andaya from the San Francisco Police Department.
1996: Founded Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
In 1996, Van Jones founded the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights.
June 1997: Firing of Officer Marc Andaya
In June 1997, following a campaign led by Jones and PoliceWatch, the San Francisco Police Commission voted to fire officer Marc Andaya for falsifying his application to the department.
1999: Campaign against Proposition 21
In 1999, Van Jones led a campaign to defeat Proposition 21, which aimed to increase penalties for violent crimes and try more juvenile offenders as adults.
2000: Continued Campaign against Proposition 21
In 2000, Van Jones continued to lead a campaign to defeat Proposition 21, aiming to increase penalties for violent crimes. Despite efforts to mobilize student protests, the proposition was passed.
2001: Launched Books Not Bars Campaign
In 2001, Van Jones and the Ella Baker Center launched the "Books Not Bars" campaign to address the increasing rates of incarceration, especially among minorities.
2003: Grassroots Director for Arianna Huffington
During the 2003 California gubernatorial recall election, Van Jones served as Arianna Huffington's statewide grassroots director.
2003: Blocked Construction of Super-Jail for Youth
From 2001 to 2003, Van Jones led an effort to block the construction of a proposed "Super-Jail for Youth" in Oakland's Alameda County.
2004: Alleged Signing of 911Truth.org Petition
In 2004, Van Jones was accused of signing a petition by 911Truth.org suggesting the Bush administration allowed 9/11 to happen, which he denied. The group, in 2010, retracted this claim.
2005: Promoting Eco-Capitalism and Environmental Justice
By 2005, Van Jones had begun promoting eco-capitalism and environmental justice. The Ella Baker Center expanded its vision to focus on job, wealth, and health creation.
2005: Produced Social Equity Track
In 2005, Van Jones and the Ella Baker Center produced the "Social Equity Track" for the United Nations' World Environment Day celebration held in San Francisco.
2005: Co-founded Color of Change
In 2005, following Hurricane Katrina, Van Jones and James Rucker co-founded Color of Change, a Web-based grassroots organization addressing Black issues.
August 2008: Featured on Sea Change Radio
In August 2008, Van Jones was featured on the grassroots radio program Sea Change Radio.
October 20, 2008: Oakland Green Jobs Corps Launch
On October 20, 2008, the City of Oakland formally launched the Oakland Green Jobs Corps, a public-private partnership to provide job training and support for Oakland residents in the new energy economy.
2008: Publication of The Green Collar Economy
In 2008, Van Jones published his first book, "The Green Collar Economy", which outlines a plan for addressing economic and environmental issues. The book received favorable reviews.
February 2009: Berkeley Lecture
In February 2009, Van Jones gave a lecture at the Berkeley Energy and Resources Collaborative.
March 2009: Appointed Special Advisor for Green Jobs
In March 2009, Van Jones was appointed as Special Advisor for Green Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality.
July 2009: Color of Change Campaign
In July 2009, Color of Change, which Jones had founded, launched a campaign urging advertisers on Beck's Fox News show to pull their ads due to comments made by Beck about President Obama.
September 5, 2009: Resignation from White House
On September 5, 2009, Van Jones resigned from his position as Special Advisor for Green Jobs, citing a "vicious smear campaign" and his concern that he was becoming a distraction.
September 2009: Controversy over Berkeley Lecture
In September 2009, a video circulated on YouTube from a February 2009 lecture by Van Jones at the Berkeley Energy and Resources Collaborative, where he used strong language to refer to Congressional Republican lawmakers, leading to controversy and an apology from Jones.
2009: Keynote Speaker at Powershift
In 2009, Van Jones was a keynote speaker at Powershift. This event further highlights his early involvement and advocacy in climate justice and youth activism.
February 2010: Senior Fellow at Center for American Progress
In February 2010, Van Jones became a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, where he led the Green Opportunity Initiative. This initiative aimed to develop a clear agenda for expanding investment, innovation, and opportunity through clean energy and environmental restoration.
July 27, 2010: 911truth.org Statement
On July 27, 2010, the group 911truth.org released a statement confirming that they were unable to produce evidence that Van Jones had signed their petition.
October 2, 2010: One Nation Working Together Rally
On October 2, 2010, Van Jones spoke at the One Nation Working Together rally in Washington, D.C., addressing the importance of linking the fight against poverty with the fight against pollution. He advocated for green jobs as a means to provide "real solutions" instead of "hateful rhetoric".
April 15, 2011: Keynote Speaker at Powershift 2011
On April 15, 2011, Van Jones served as a keynote speaker at Powershift 2011 in Washington, D.C., addressing over 10,000 students. He spoke on issues of climate justice and the importance of standing up for underrepresented communities.
June 2011: Launch of Rebuild the Dream Campaign
In June 2011, Van Jones collaborated with MoveOn.org to launch the Rebuild the Dream campaign. This initiative aimed to establish a progressive American Dream movement as a counter to the Tea Party movement.
June 23, 2011: Rebuild the Dream Campaign Kickoff
On June 23, 2011, the Rebuild the Dream campaign officially kicked off with performances by The Roots and a DJ set by Shepard Fairey. The campaign also announced its "Contract for the American Dream" as a counter to the Tea Party's "Contract from America."
July 2011: House Meetings for Rebuild the Dream
In July 2011, house meetings were held as part of the Rebuild the Dream campaign. Van Jones claimed that by the end of July 2011, 127,000 people had become involved in the movement.
April 2012: Publication of "Rebuild the Dream"
In April 2012, Van Jones published his second book, "Rebuild the Dream". The book debuted at number 16 on the New York Times Best-Seller list.
June 2013: Announcement as Co-host of Crossfire
In June 2013, Van Jones was announced as a co-host of the reboot of CNN's political debate show, Crossfire. His co-hosts included Newt Gingrich, Stephanie Cutter, and S.E. Cupp.
September 16, 2013: Debut of Crossfire Reboot
On September 16, 2013, the new version of Crossfire, co-hosted by Van Jones, premiered on CNN.
October 2014: Cancellation of Crossfire
In October 2014, the rebooted version of Crossfire, on which Van Jones was a co-host, was canceled by CNN.
March 2015: #cut50 Bi-partisan Summit with Newt Gingrich
In March 2015, #cut50 hosted a "bi-partisan summit" with Republican Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, to promote bi-partisan solutions to criminal justice reform.
November 2015: Alicia Keys Supports #cut50
In November 2015, #cut50 gained the support of singer Alicia Keys, furthering the organization's reach in criminal justice reform efforts.
2015: Launch of #YesWeCode Initiative
In early 2015, Van Jones launched #YesWeCode, aiming to "teach 100,000 low-income kids to write code". Prince helped support the launch, and Van Jones credited him with the idea to form #YesWeCode.
November 2016: Described Election Result as "Whitelash"
After Donald Trump's victory in the November 2016 election, Van Jones described the result as a "whitelash." This term was used to describe a racist backlash by white Americans who had opposed President Obama.
2016: Celebrity Support for #cut50
In 2016, Alicia Keys made a video appeal to Congressman Paul Ryan asking him to commit to giving legislation on criminal justice reform a vote, which Ryan committed to do days later. #cut50 also received support from "100 A-List celebrities" including Amy Schumer, Steph Curry, and Shonda Rhimes.
2016: The Messy Truth Miniseries wins Webby Award
In 2016, Magic Labs Media, a company founded and owned by Van Jones, produced The Messy Truth miniseries, which won a Webby Award.
2016: Launch of The Messy Truth
In 2016, Van Jones launched The Messy Truth, a news feature documentary series, which was later followed by a studio discussion series.
2017: Airing of The Messy Truth with Van Jones
In 2017, The Messy Truth with Van Jones, a studio discussion series, aired on CNN, following the initial news feature documentary series.
May 2018: Meeting with Jared Kushner and President Trump at the White House
In May 2018, Van Jones and other members of #cut50 met with Jared Kushner and President Donald Trump at the White House to discuss a criminal justice reform bill.
October 18, 2019: Defense of Tulsi Gabbard Against Hillary Clinton's Claims
On October 18, 2019, Van Jones defended Tulsi Gabbard after Hillary Clinton suggested that Russians were "grooming" her to be a third-party candidate to help President Trump win reelection. Jones argued against legitimizing attacks without real evidence and stated that such actions played into the hands of the Russians.
2019: Launch of The Redemption Project
In 2019, Van Jones launched The Redemption Project with Van Jones. The show focuses on restorative justice, bringing offenders face to face with those most affected by their violent crimes.
May 29, 2020: Comments on White Liberals and Race
On May 29, 2020, during a CNN's New Day segment, Van Jones commented on racial issues, stating that the white liberal Hillary Clinton supporter walking her dog in Central Park, referencing Amy Cooper's incident involving Christian Cooper, can weaponize race even with good intentions, and even the most liberal well-intentioned white person has a virus in his or her brain that can be activated at an instant.
2020: The Messy Truth VR experience wins Emmy Award
In 2020, Magic Labs Media produced The Messy Truth VR experience, which won an Emmy Award.
2020: Advising the Trump White House on Police Reform
In late spring 2020, after the police murder of George Floyd, Van Jones advised the Trump White House on police reform policy. He subsequently praised the president's executive order on police reform.
2021: Launch of "Uncommon Ground with Van Jones" Podcast
In 2021, Magic Labs Media launched the weekly podcast "Uncommon Ground with Van Jones".
June 2025: Advocacy for War with Iran
In late June 2025, Van Jones advocated for war with Iran by either Israel, the US, or both. Jones also claimed that progressives underestimate how dangerous Iran is and should get on board with Donald Trump's position on Iran.
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