Ben Jealous facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Ben Jealous
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Jealous in 2017
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| Executive Director of the Sierra Club | |
| Assumed office November 14, 2022 |
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| Preceded by | Michael Brune |
| President and CEO of the NAACP | |
| In office September 1, 2008 – November 1, 2013 |
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| Preceded by | Dennis Courtland Hayes (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Lorraine Miller (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Benjamin Todd Jealous
January 18, 1973 Pacific Grove, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Thomas Jefferson Peter G. Morgan Edward David Bland |
| Education | Columbia University (BA) St Antony's College, Oxford (MSc) |
Benjamin Todd Jealous (born January 18, 1973) is an American leader who fights for civil rights and protects the environment. He is the executive director of the Sierra Club, a group that works to protect nature. He was also the president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
When he became the leader of the NAACP in 2008, he was only 35 years old. This made him the youngest national leader in the organization's history.
In 2018, Jealous ran for governor of Maryland as a member of the Democratic Party. He won the party's primary election but lost the main election to the governor at the time, Larry Hogan.
Jealous is also a partner at a company called Kapor Capital, which invests in new technology businesses. He teaches at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School. In 2020, he became the president of People for the American Way, another group that protects people's rights.
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Early Life and School
Ben Jealous was born in 1973 in Pacific Grove, California. His mother, Ann Jealous, is biracial and worked as a therapist. She helped to integrate, or bring students of all races together, at her high school in Baltimore, Maryland.
His father, Fred Jealous, is white. He also took part in protests called sit-ins to help end segregation in Baltimore. At that time, laws in Maryland did not allow interracial couples to get married. Ben's parents had to travel to Washington, D.C., to get married. They later moved to California where Ben was born.
As a child, Jealous was good friends with the comedian Dave Chappelle. Their fathers were best friends.
Jealous went to Columbia University and earned a degree in political science. He was a Rhodes Scholar, which is a very high honor. This allowed him to study at the University of Oxford in England, where he earned a master's degree.
Career as an Activist
Starting His Work
While studying at Columbia University, Jealous began working as an organizer for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. He was suspended from school for protesting a plan to build on the site where Malcolm X was assassinated.
During his suspension, he traveled to the southern United States. In Mississippi, he helped organize efforts to save three historically black colleges from closing. He also worked as a journalist for the Jackson Advocate, a historically black newspaper. His reporting helped uncover problems at a state prison and prove a farmer was not guilty of a crime.
After finishing his studies at Oxford, Jealous became the executive director of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA). This is a group of over 200 black community newspapers. Later, he worked for Amnesty International, a human rights group. There, he focused on issues like racial profiling and unfair prison sentences.
Leading the NAACP
In 2008, Jealous was elected president of the NAACP. At 35, he was the youngest person to ever hold the job. He led the organization for five years. During his time as president, he started new programs focused on criminal justice, health, and protecting the environment.
Under his leadership, the NAACP helped register over 370,000 new voters. The organization also supported important causes like ending the death penalty in some states and supporting marriage equality.
Jealous helped the NAACP grow. The number of online activists grew from 175,000 to over 675,000. The number of people donating money to the organization also greatly increased. He was praised for bringing new energy to the NAACP.
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Jealous believed in working with other groups to achieve common goals. He worked with labor unions, environmental groups, and even conservative groups on issues like criminal justice reform. For example, the NAACP worked with Tea Party leaders in Texas to pass laws that led to the state's first-ever prison closure.
Running for Governor of Maryland
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In 2017, Jealous announced he was running for governor of Maryland. Many progressive groups and unions supported him. Famous people like Senators Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris, and his childhood friend Dave Chappelle, also endorsed him.
He won the Democratic primary election in June 2018. .....
In the general election on November 6, 2018, Jealous lost to the current governor, Larry Hogan.
Work with the Sierra Club
Ben Jealous was named the executive director of the Sierra Club in 2022. The Sierra Club is a major environmental organization. His time as leader has faced challenges, including disagreements with staff and unions about changes within the organization.
In 2024, a union representing many Sierra Club employees held a vote of "no confidence" in his leadership. This means they formally stated that they did not have faith in his ability to lead.
In 2025, a respected environmental justice leader, Robert D. Bullard, asked the Sierra Club to remove his name from an award. He said the organization had not kept its promises to a community. This led to more criticism of Jealous's leadership. In July 2025, Jealous took a leave of absence from his job at the Sierra Club.
Personal Life
Jealous was married to Lia Epperson, a law professor, from 2002 to 2015. They have two children together. He currently lives in Alameda, California.
Awards and Honors
Jealous has received many awards for his work, including:
- The John Jay Award from Columbia University in 2009.
- Being named one of Time magazine's "40 Under 40" rising stars in politics in 2010.
- Being named to Fortune magazine's "40 Under 40" list in 2012.
- The Puffin/Nation Prize for Creative Citizenship in 2012.
- Being named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in 2013.
- Being named Marylander of The Year by the Baltimore Sun newspaper in 2013.
See also
- Reach: 40 Black Men Speak on Living, Leading and Succeeding, a book of personal stories edited by Jealous and Trabian Shorters
