Cousins!

It is with a truly heavy heart that we inform you all of the passing of Civil Rights historian and leader Vernon Jordan at the age of 85 years old!

According to CNN Vernon’s niece Ann Walker confirmed that he passed surrounded by his wife and family. She states that he had chocolate chip ice cream right before he went to bed.

“It was just the way he would have wanted it,”

Leaving behind a multi-decked legacy in areas of politics and the civil rights movement, Vernon was a close adviser to former President Bill Clinton and also worked with Lyndon Johnson, Barack Obama, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush.

Vernon worked as a field director for the NAACP and the Southern Regional Council for the Voter education Project just before being named President of the National Urban League.

“Today, the world lost an influential figure in the fight for civil rights and American politics, Vernon Jordan. An icon to the world and a lifelong friend to the NAACP, his contribution to moving our society toward justice is unparalleled,” says NAACP President Derrick Johnson within a forwarded statement.