On the this episode of Disrupting the Dominoes, Arlene chats with Elliot Jones, MACRO Program Manager!
Originally from Oakland, California, Elliott Jones was raised in a family dedicated to social justice, civil service, and community outreach. He graduated from St. John’s University in 2008 and worked for William “Bill” Lynch Jr., NYC’s first black Deputy Mayor, developing a passion for the impact of public policy on people’s lives. Jones then worked for a decade in South Florida on common-sense gun reform, working closely with Moms Demand Action on Gun Sense in America, Everytown for Gun Safety, and Mothers Fighting for Justice.
Jones has also worked toward the preservation of African American history with a number of projects in the Liberty City, Little Haiti, and Overtown neighborhoods of Miami, Florida. Since 2014 Jones’ philanthropy has focused on his grandmother’s foundation, The Dr. Maya Angelou Foundation, which provides scholarships to all students who aspire to attend historically black colleges and universities (HBCU’s). Jones returned to Oakland in 2019 in hopes of contributing to the tireless, brave work of grassroots organizations and changes agents who have always trailblazed the path of progress.
In November of 2021, Jones was hired by the Oakland Fire Department as the Mobile Assistance Community Responders of Oakland (MACRO) Program Manager, with the goal of striving to deliver non-police, non-emergency alternative first response program that is unique to Oakland and delivering Empathy, Service and Community to all residents.