JACKSONVILLE — Barry Jefferson, the new president of the Jacksonville chapter of the NAACP, said that when growing up in Little Rock, he saw violence. He said his own sister joined a gang, became a prostitute, went to prison and died of AIDS.
“I just wanted to do something different,” he said. “That’s what it is. I didn’t want my life to be like that.”
Jefferson, 43, said he, his two brothers and a sister were raised by a hardworking, single mother. Part of his life was spent in a housing project; then his mother moved him and his three siblings to a neighborhood near Central High School.
“We moved a lot in my younger years; I never built a friendship with anyone,” he said. “I tell people, ‘I don’t have childhood friends.’ The only people we knew were the people in gangs or people who were doing what they shouldn’t be doing. That’s why I’m out here fighting every day. I say it starts with me to make changes.
“I saw it with my own eyes — crime, and people who didn’t have anything to eat in their home. I was one of those kids. Mom had to stretch, … but we ate every night.”
Jefferson said one of his primary mentors growing up was Joe Lair, the only white man in Jefferson’s neighborhood.
“He was an older white guy who took me under his wing and just loved me and showed me how to be a man and how to do something different,” Jefferson said, adding that Lair has since died of cancer.
Jefferson’s mother was a housekeeper, and she walked to catch the bus every day to go to work. He often went with her.
“I watched my mom; she was so dedicated,” he said. Jefferson saw the pride she took in cleaning people’s homes and making them presentable.
He said that’s probably what led him to the job he has now, director of environmental services for the Little Rock-based Arkansas Heart Hospital. He oversees housekeeping, biohazard materials and more.
Although he said he was a “no name” in the race, Jefferson defeated 21-year incumbent Robert Green for a seat on the Pulaski County Quorum Court.
“It was a three-year prayer,” Jefferson said.
He said he talked to his wife, who is not a big fan of politics.
“I was wanting to make a difference in my community. I thought I could be the best choice for the district,” he said. District 10 encompasses downtown North Little Rock and extends east to the county line, bordered by U.S. 67 to the north and U.S. 70 to the south.
“My district is one of the poorest districts in the county, and I felt we had to figure out a way to move forward. We really need to connect the whole District 10 as one so we can build and be a better district for each other. I think that’s key — you want to take care of the whole area,” Jefferson said.
“I believe people need to be independent, not depend on the government. You need to build yourself,” he said. “I think the problem is, our society wants our government to do everything for them. There’s a place for government, but people need to help. Young people in Dick Jeter, one of the poorest communities in District 10 — one of the big issues they have is flooding.”
Jefferson said that while he was campaigning, some of the residents of Dick Jeter called him, and the floodwaters were receding.
“I got them organized,” he said. “I told them, ‘You’ve got to do this yourself.’”
Jefferson said he enlisted the help of the news media to bring attention to the problem.
“The things they have done in that community themselves, organizing and building — that’s what I’m talking about,” he said.
But before Jefferson started working for the hospital, he dabbled in all sorts of things, especially politics, an interest that was sparked in him when he was a child.
He said his mother was understandably overprotective, especially since two of his three siblings had gotten into trouble. Jefferson stayed home a lot, off the streets, and watched television.
“I spent a lot of time looking at news,” he said. “I fell in love with politics.”
After high school, he went to Southern New Hampshire University and majored in business, although he didn’t finish his degree.
“I like New Hampshire; I really do. I did a little bit of politics,” he said.
A “little bit” might be an understatement.
“When Wesley Clark ran for president, I was on his team; my job was as operations person. I went around all over the country to set up offices for the campaign and break them down, make sure records were in storage.
“He was the guy; I think he still is the guy. I liked him a lot,” Jefferson said of Clark.
Jefferson’s office then was in Little Rock, but he traveled all over the country. Jefferson has also lived in Texas, South Carolina and Virginia.
He lived in the Hampton Row area of Virginia for two years and worked on Tim Kaine’s successful bid as governor of Virginia. Kaine served as Hillary Clinton’s vice-presidential running mate in her unsuccessful bid for president in 2016.
“[Kaine] was a great guy,” Jefferson said. “He was personable, he was respectful, and he was a great leader. That was the best thing I ever did, learning so many new things, meeting so many new people.
“I enjoy traveling, and especially snow. I love snow.”
Back in his home state, Jefferson also helped with former Gov. Mike Beebe’s campaign for governor in 2006, serving as the county coordinator for northeast Arkansas.
Jefferson moved from Little Rock to Jacksonville in 2011, when he married Natasha.
“We wanted to get away from the big city and move to a diverse city,” he said.
Jefferson said he gets involved with causes that relate to experiences that have affected his life. He is chairman of Project We Restore, which addresses youth violence and domestic violence, work inspired by his sister’s experiences.
He’s been involved with the Jacksonville chapter of NAACP for two or three years, he said, and was encouraged to run for president of the organization.
“I’ve always been involved in social justice,” he said, and social economics, through groups like the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now.
“It’s important to get involved if you care about your community,” Jefferson said. “When you fight as a group, you get things done, but it’s hard to do as an individual. That’s one reason why I joined our [NAACP] chapter in Jacksonville.
“We are one of the best chapters in the state of Arkansas. We’re very busy, involved.”
Jefferson said the chapter has about 80 members.
He said one of his strengths is organizing, and the chapter is working with residents of the Jacksonville housing authority “to get them mobilized and encouraged.”
He also wants to motivate younger people to participate in NAACP, whose members are mostly 40 or older, he said.
“We want to build a youth chapter; it’s very important we have a youth chapter that can continue the legacy. I’m 43 years old; my time is running down,” he said.
“We need younger people to take up the torch and walk with it. One way is by educating them. I want to educate people about the NAACP. This is not an organization against the government or whites. … We are not,” Jefferson said.
“I’ve had conversations with people [who say], ‘Y’all are just against the government,’ or ‘Y’all are just against white people.’ No, it was founded by a Jewish man, an African-American [and others],” he said. “We have members who are white or other races.
“We’re trying to build our communities. We’re trying to organize people to fight for education and economic justice.”
Reginald Ford, vice president of the Jacksonville chapter, agrees that the NAACP is out for good.
“It’s really artful, when you think about it. The NAACP has been vilified almost on the same level as the Ku Klux Klan. We’ve never intimidated anybody, never killed anybody. … We’re here to help people,” Ford said.
“What our organization is doing in Jacksonville, we have been tearing down that stereotype and recruiting … nonwhite members. Ironically, we have the mayor-elect (Bob Johnson) as an NAACP member; his wife is,” Ford said. “I’m really thrilled. We’re probably one of the most diverse branches in Arkansas. It tears down those misconceptions. Bottom line, equity does not have a color.”
Ford encouraged Jefferson to run for the office.
“I will tell you this; I think his leadership is pretty remarkable,” Ford said of Jefferson. “He has a lot of experience in the civilian sector — I say that because I’m retired military. …
“… NAACP is a volunteer organization. It’s hard to hold volunteers accountable. He has that unique ability to give assignments and doesn’t have a problem in saying, ‘Hey, you didn’t bring forth your information.’ That’s what I’m excited about, bringing some accountability.”
Ford said older members of organizations tend to be passive, and sometimes it takes “a verbal bonfire” to make changes.
“What we need is a leader who is willing to be controversial a little bit, agitate a little bit,” Ford said.
One of Jefferson’s goals as NAACP president is to continue to work with the 3-year-old Jacksonville School District and build a relationship, “so we can be a partner, talk about our discipline issues — why we get kids expelled from school, why we’re getting kids arrested, why a high percentage of African-Americans are not graduating,” Jefferson said.
“We can help as an organization and build a partnership on that, support them and help them be better. Then the community of Jacksonville will be better,” he said.
It’s not that the chapter hasn’t been working hard already, Ford and Jefferson said.
The Jacksonville chapter sponsored a summer reading program at the housing authority and Arkansas Kids Read in the Jacksonville School District.
Jefferson said volunteers, including him, primarily read at Bobby Lester Elementary School.
“That’s very, very important,” Jefferson said. “One of the biggest problems in our society is kids not reading on their grade level.”
Forming partnerships is a goal of the Jacksonville chapter, he said, adding that relationships have been made with the Jacksonville Area Chamber of Commerce.
“I’ll say this about our chapter. … What we’re doing in Jacksonville is going to set the landmark for the whole state of Arkansas,” he said. “We are trying to build a coalition of people who care about people.
“We want people to be independent, understand social justice, for people to understand you can have a better education. You can work with people who are different than you.”
Ford said he looks forward to seeing what Jefferson does in his role as president, starting in January.
“Barry’s leadership is going to be pretty powerful,” Ford said.
Jefferson said his mother still asks once in a while if he’s staying out of trouble.
It looks like his mother doesn’t have anything to worry about.
Senior writer Tammy Keith can be reached at (501) 327-0370 or tkeith@arkansasonline.com.