Dr. Opal C. Jones (1919 or 20-1998) was a welfare activist in Los Angeles. In the 1950s, she was associate director of the UCLA campus YMCA, and a social worker at the Avalon-Carver Community Center, providing service resources to low-income residents in south central L.A. In 1965, she was the founder and executive director of the Neighborhood Adult Participation Project (NAPP), one of the main programs administered by the main agency of the Los Angeles “War on Poverty.” At that time there were almost no African American women working as executive directors. In 1966, Jones sought to separate NAPP from the Economic and Youth Opportunities Agency (EYOA) so that it could be operated for the benefit of the community. Joe Maldonado, executive director of the EYOA, fired her. She succeeded in recovering her position and EYOA was reorganized and decentralized as a result of her efforts. Her distinguished career in public service earned her numerous awards, citations, resolutions and certificates from everybody from the president of the United States to the Los Angeles City Council, which named her Woman of the Year in 1960. Born in Tyler, Texas, she received her BA degree from Prairie View A&M University, her master of social work from the Atlanta University School of Social Work and her doctor of education from the University of San Francisco. African Americans protesting the firing of Opal C. Jones, executive director of the Neighborhood Adult Participation Project (NAPP), some holding signs, line a sidewalk on a commercial street as two visible white policemen stand in the street. One protest sign reads "N.A.P.P. Ain't Napping!" Written on back of photo: Demonstration protesting firing of Opal Jones
If you're wondering about permissions and what you can do with this item, a good starting point is the "rights information" on this page. See our terms of use for more tips.
Share your story
Has Calisphere helped you advance your research, complete a project, or find something meaningful? We'd love to hear about it; please send us a message.
