Jordan, Vernon Eulion, Jr.

Jordan, Vernon Eulion, Jr., 1935–, African-American civil-rights leader and lawyer, b. Atlanta, Ga. A graduate of the Howard Univ. Law School, he was executive director (1970–71) of the United Negro College Fund and president (1972–81) of the National Urban League. After being wounded (1980) by a sniper in Fort Wayne, Ind., he retired to law practice in Washington, D.C. In 1992–93 he was head of the transition team for incoming president Bill Clinton, for whom he became an influential adviser. In 2006 he served as a member of the Iraq Study Group.

See his memoir, Vernon Can Read! (2001).

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