Civil rights leader, Clinton advisor Vernon Jordan dead at 85

Atlanta native Vernon Jordan, a Civil Rights leader and advisor to former President Bill Clinton, died at age 85 on March 1.

The former president of the National Urban League, the Harvard Law graduate made headlines in 1961 as the attorney of two two Black students – Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter – who filed suit against the University of Georgia’s integration policy. He also worked as a field director for the NAACP and was a director of the Southern Regional Council for the Voter Education Project.

In 1980, he survived an assassination attempt in Washington D.C. after being shot in a hotel parking lot after leaving the Urban League’s annual dinner.

“Derek and I are deeply saddened by the passing of Vernon E. Jordan, Jr.,” Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said in statement on behalf of she and her husband. “Like many others in Atlanta, there is a deep and abiding personal connection to Mr. Jordan. He spent a lifetime fighting injustice—from the marching band of David T. Howard High School, to the court room, to the White House, to the boardroom and beyond, he made Atlanta proud to call him our own. Our family’s thoughts, prayers and love are with his family during the difficult days ahead.

The Atlanta City Council released the following statement after Jordan’s passing: “Vernon Jordan was truly a beloved figure in Atlanta and throughout the country. He fought boldly and bravely against racial discrimination through his civil rights activism and his leadership of the National Urban League. He also was a trailblazer and a leading voice in the world of business and helped to shape our national policy as an advisor to President Bill Clinton. His warm and caring nature will be deeply missed, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family as we mourn his loss.”

And Clinton tweeted this statement along with a photo of the two together:

Vernon Jordan was a wonderful friend to Hillary, Chelsea, and me, in good times and bad. We worked and played, laughed and cried, won and lost together. We loved him very much and always will. pic.twitter.com/mZAsx1xETn

— Bill Clinton (@BillClinton) March 2, 2021

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