Junius (Esq.) is a senior research fellow at CEPR and is the official historian for Newark, New Jersey. He is the host of the Everything’s Political podcast that examines the hidden side of politics through conversations about social justice issues. Junius holds a JD from Yale Law School.

Junius is a nationally recognized attorney, musician, educator, and independent thinker who has been at the forefront of the civil rights and human rights movements in the United States for decades. His life has been chronicled in the Civil Rights History Project, a collaborative initiative of the Library of Congress and the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution. His interview is one of 11 shown nationally on C-SPAN. Junius’s speeches have energized young and old alike in places like the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC; the Schomberg Center for Research in Black Culture in New York; Shiloh Baptist Church in Trenton, NJ; and colleges throughout the country.

As the youngest president of the National Bar Association, the oldest and largest organization of black attorneys in the US, Junius spoke at the United Nations, advocating for genuine democracy on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe. He was listed as one of the “100 Most Influential Blacks in America” in Ebony Magazine; ran for mayor of Newark; and recently retired as the founding director of the Abbott Leadership Institute at Rutgers University Newark, where he taught leadership and community organization based on lessons outlined in his book, Unfinished Agenda, Urban Politics in the Era of Black Power (2014). He sings, plays blues harmonica, and celebrates with audiences the rich cultural heritage of American music, from the Negro spirituals, blues, jazz, and gospel to hip-hop.

In 2016, Junius served as chairman of the Newark Celebration 350 to commemorate the 350th anniversary of Newark’s founding. He is producer of the “The North,” a digital portrayal of the black empowerment experience that began in Newark, New Jersey, at www.riseupnorth.com. The common thread in Junius’s life, shared in his speeches and advocacy, is his passion for justice. He uses stories, candid commentary, humor, and his music to inspire and empower his audiences. Many people have benefited by the work he has done and continues to do.