September 8, 2013 | Read Time: 1 minute
Benjamin Todd Jealous, who is leaving as chief executive of the NAACP after five years, is “an organizer’s organizer,” says Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club, which has collaborated with the civil-rights group on environmental and voting-rights campaigns.
“He’s cast a big shadow in the progressive world. He’s good in front of the camera, but he’s equally good when we’re making strategy behind closed doors.”
Some keys to Mr. Jealous’s success:
Experience at the grass roots
He began working as a community organizer while a student at Columbia University, fighting the closing of a women’s hospital in New York’s Harlem and protesting the university’s plans to demolish the site of Malcolm X’s assassination and build a research facility. His activism made a difference: The hospital remains in Harlem, and much of the facade and interior of the Malcolm X site were saved. But his actions had consequences: He was suspended from college for the Malcolm X protests.
Knowledge of news media
Mr. Jealous was managing editor of Mississippi’s Jackson Advocate, where he exposed corruption among prison officials and instances of racial discrimination. He also fought to save other black newspapers in the region, gaining experience in how to run difficult campaigns.
Choosing partners strategically
During his tenure, the NAACP has joined with a wide range of organizations—such as the Sierra Club—on campaigns, working on common goals, getting its message in front of new audiences, and impressing grant makers with its capacity for collaboration.
