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A Press Statement from Advancement Project –
Julian Bond
WASHINGTON – The Southern Poverty Law Center announced earlier this week that Mr. Horace Julian Bond succumbed to a brief illness on Sunday, August 15. The national racial justice organization, Advancement Project, released the following statement regarding the passing of the long-time civil rights leader:
“A man of wisdom, courage and strong conviction, Mr. Bond was an iconic jewel who will be sorely missed,” said Advancement Project Co-Director Judith Browne Dianis. “From co-founding the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and the Southern Poverty Law Center, to serving as a state legislator in the Georgia State Senate and the Georgia House of Representatives, to his decade-long tenure at the helm of the NAACP, Mr. Bond was an impactful leader, educator and civil rights activist. While many were never his formal students at the many colleges and universities where he taught and lectured — Harvard, American University, Drexel, The University of Pennsylvania – we are all beneficiaries of his enduring lessons on organizing against injustice and structural racism.”
“In all respects, Julian Bond was legendary. In 1968, he was the youngest person, and the first African American, to have his name placed into nomination for Vice President,” said Advancement Project Managing Director and General Counsel Edward A. Hailes. “He withdrew because he didn’t meet the constitutional requirement of being at least 35 years old. Regardless of the formal title he held, Julian Bond continued fighting for marginalized communities. It is on his shoulders that young leaders, who have ushered in unprecedented focus and attention on police interactions with communities of color, stand.”
“Many people recognize Mr. Bond as a civil rights activist, but to me, he is revered as a strategic communicator, having served as communications director for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and host of America’s Black Forum, one of the longest running syndicated television shows in history,” said Advancement Project Managing Director for Communications Jennifer R. Farmer.
