Clarence B. Jones, who helped argue the Alabama based U.S. Supreme Court case “New York Times v. Sullivan," has died. The civil rights activist and attorney also wrote part of the iconic “I Have A Dream” speech delivered by Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior in 1963 in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Jones was 95.
Jones was on the winning side of the SCOTUS case “New York Times v. Sullivan,” where Montgomery Public Safety Commission L.B. Sullivan sued the Times for publishing an advertisement in 1960 that he considered defamatory. The high court decision defined how public figures don’t have the same right to legal protection from defamation as regular citizens. It also spelled out the precedent of “actual malice” to journalists. That's where a reporter or news organization isn’t protected by the first amendment if they knowingly generate content that is false. Those who sue newsrooms must prove, under Sullivan, that “actual malice” occurred.
Jones roots with Doctor Martin Luther King, Junior run deeper than the Sullivan case or the “I Have A Dream” speech. When the civil rights leader was arrested for leading protests in Birmingham, it was Jones who smuggled out King’s famous “Letter from Birmingham jail" which, among other things, praised Springhill College in Mobile, Alabama for integrating in 1954. King's letter also stated that people should only follow just laws and break those that are unjust.
Jones was living in an assisted living facility in Cupertino, Calfornia until his death last week. He remained a vocal supporter of King’s legacy, and spoke out against attempts to undermine the Voting Rights Act. Jones addressed the San Francisco Film Festival just last month to criticize the Trump administration’s efforts to erase African American U.S. House seats in Congress by rewriting voting maps.
