Jolanda Jones

{{Short description|American attorney, politician and heptathlete (born 1965)}}

{{Infobox officeholder

|name = Jolanda Jones

|image = Jolanda Jones.jpg

|caption = Jones speaking in 2009

|state_house = Texas

|district = 147th

|term_start = May 18, 2022

|term_end =

|predecessor = Garnet Coleman

|successor =

|birth_name = Jolanda Felicia Jones

|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1965|11|6}}

|birth_place = Harris County, Texas, U.S.

|death_date =

|death_place =

|party = Democratic

|education = University of Houston (BA, JD)

}}

Jolanda Felicia Jones{{cite web |url=https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/10227418:8781 |title=Jolanda Felicia Jones |website=Ancestry Institute |publisher=Ancestry |access-date=November 20, 2022}} (born November 6, 1965){{Citation|title=Survivor – Survivor Cast Member|url=https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/cast/20673/|language=en|access-date=2020-03-04}} is an American attorney, politician, and television personality, as well as a former city councilor and heptathlete. Jones, a Democrat, is currently a member of the Texas House of Representatives, representing the 147th district. She was sworn in on May 18, 2022.{{Cite news |url=https://www.texastribune.org/2022/05/08/texas-house-special-election-jolanda-jones/|work=Texas Tribune|date=May 9, 2022|access-date=June 8, 2022|title=Democrat Jolanda Jones narrowly wins special election for state House seat in Houston}}

Early life and education

Jones, the oldest of five children, was born to John Ferrell Jones and Gwendolyn Jean West and raised in Houston's Third Ward.{{Cite web |last=Ross |first=Dalton |title=Jolanda Jones on being portrayed as the 'bitch' on 'Survivor: Palau' |url=https://ew.com/tv/survivor-palau-jolanda-jones-quarantine-questionnaire/ |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=EW.com |language=en}} During her childhood, she lost her father, brother, and immediate family members to either suicide or murder.{{Cite web |last=Johns |first=Merryn |date=2020-07-09 |title=Raising The Bar: Jolanda Jones Delivers Justice |url=https://www.curvemag.com/community/activism/raising-the-bar-jolanda-jones-delivers-justice/ |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=CURVE |language=en-US}} Despite her tough circumstances, Jones' mother was insistent that she succeed academically. At Elsik High School, Jones was an All-American basketball player and track and field athlete. She earned an athletic scholarship to the University of Houston, and graduated with a political science degree. At the 1987 Pan American Games she won bronze, and in 1989 she was US champion. Representing the University of Houston, she was a three time NCAA champion (1986, 1987, 1989). In 1995, she earned her J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center.{{Cite web |title=Jones '95 is hopeful "Sisters in Law" can change perception of black women on reality TV |url=https://www.law.uh.edu/news/summer2016/0603Jones.asp |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=www.law.uh.edu}} She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha.{{Cite web |last=Hughes |first=Jazmine |title=The Tight-Knit World of Kamala Harris's Sorority|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/10/28/the-tight-knit-world-of-kamala-harris-sorority?utm_brand=tny&mbid=social_twitter&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_social-type=owned |access-date=2024-11-03 |website=www.newyorker.com}}

In 2004, she competed in Survivor: Palau, where she was the third person eliminated from the game, finishing in 18th place. From 2008 until 2011 she was a member of the Houston City Council, school board member and is a criminal defense lawyer in Texas. In 2016, she appeared on the reality series "Sisters in Law", which focused on several Black female attorneys practicing in Houston, Texas.{{Cite web |last=White |first=Chelsea Lenora |date=2016-03-23 |title=Sisters In Law |url=https://forwardtimes.com/sisters-in-law/ |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=Houston Forward Times |language=en-US}}

Jones is openly lesbian, though she was once married to an abusive husband. Her experiences made her an advocate for LGBTQ causes and domestic violence victims.{{Cite web |date=2022-01-28 |title=Out for Change: Political Powerhouse - OutSmart Magazine |url=https://www.outsmartmagazine.com/2022/01/out-for-change-political-powerhouse/ |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=www.outsmartmagazine.com |language=en-US}} In May 2022, Jones became the first Black member of the LGBTQ community elected to the Texas state legislature after winning the special election to succeed retiring Representative Garnet Coleman in the Texas House District 147.{{Cite web |date=2022-05-25 |title=Black Gay Candidates Make History With Primary Wins in Texas |url=https://www.advocate.com/politics/2022/5/25/black-gay-candidates-make-history-primary-wins-texas |access-date=2022-05-26 |website=www.advocate.com |language=en}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2022/11/09/texas-elects-three-openly-lgbt-black-state-lawmakers/|title=Texas elects three openly LGBTQ Black state lawmakers|date=November 9, 2022|website=Dallas News}}

References

External links

[https://web.archive.org/web/20010718174913/http://www.jolandajones.com/ Official website]
[http://trackfield.brinkster.net/Profile.asp?ID=4862&Gender=W Profile] at trackfield.brinkster.net

{{s-ttl|title=Member of the Texas House of Representatives
from the 147th district|years=2022–present}}

Category:1959 births

Category:20th-century African-American people

Category:20th-century African-American sportswomen

Category:20th-century American sportswomen

Category:21st-century African-American people

Category:21st-century African-American women

Category:21st-century American women politicians

Category:African-American track and field athletes

Category:American athlete-politicians

Category:American heptathletes

Category:American lesbian politicians