Jerika L. Richardson is Senior Vice President for Equitable Justice & Strategic Initiatives at the National Urban League. She leads the organization’s policy and advocacy, public education, and strategic work on civic engagement/voting rights, police reform, criminal justice reform, economic and restorative justice, gun violence, combating hate and extremism, and other justice related areas. Ms. Richardson also hosts the National Urban League’s “Justice Now” YouTube series, which shines a light on justice and equity issues in the U.S.A. and the dynamic individuals striving to solve them. Previously, Ms. Richardson was Deputy Executive Director and the Senior Advisor and Secretary to the Board for the nation’s largest independent police oversight agency, the New York City Civilian Complaint Review Board. She has also served as Chief of Staff in the Office of the Counsel to the Mayor of New York City and Special Advisor to the Mayor for media relations, criminal justice, and public safety planning. Before working in City Hall, Ms. Richardson was the Senior Spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York and a Field Producer and Off-Air Reporter for ABC News.
Ms. Richardson remains civically engaged by serving on the Board of Directors for the Frederick Douglass Boulevard Alliance, the Board of Directors for Nonprofit Vote, the National Voter Registration Day Steering Committee, the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Advisory Committee on Cultural Engagement, and as a Founders Circle Member of Higher Heights for America. She frequently appears as a political commentator on television and radio and as a moderator and speaker for conversations focused on diversity, equity, social justice, and police accountability. Ms. Richardson was named a New York City 40 Under 40 Rising Star by City & State Magazine in 2015. She was also selected in 2014 as a Fellow for the Council of Urban Professionals, an organization she continues to work with on diversity and leadership initiatives.
Ms. Richardson is a member of the Greater New York Chapter of The Links, Incorporated and the Tau Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. She holds a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and a B.A. in English from Spelman College.
