ABilly S. Jones-Hennin (born 1942)[1] is an American LGBT rights activist based in Washington, D.C.

Early life and education

Jones was born in St. John's, Antigua.[1] He was adopted at age 3 by American civil rights activists.[1] As a teenager in the 1950s, he had participated in lunch counter sit-ins. After graduating from high school, he was briefly involved with the US Marine Corps.[2]

In college, he protested against the Vietnam War.[2] In 1967 he graduated from Virginia State University.[1] Later in life, he earned a master's degree in social work at Howard University.[1]

Career

Jones-Hennin has worked as a qualitative researcher.[3]

Activism

In 1978, Jones cofounded the National Coalition of Black Gays (NCBG) in Columbia, Maryland; the organization was the first national advocacy group of its kind for gay and lesbian African Americans.[1] In 1979, he was the logistics coordinator the first March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights,[4] and helped organize the National Third World LGBT Conference at Howard University.[1] That same year, the NCBG organized the first delegation of gay people of color to meet with Presidential representatives, of which Jones was a member.[5]

Jones also founded the Gay Married Men's Association (GAMMA), co-founded the D.C. chapter of Black and White Men Together,[2] and, in April 1978, founded the D.C. Coalition of Black Gays.[4][6][7] In the 1980s, Jones was a founding member of the Langston Hughes-Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic Club, an alternative to the Gertrude Stein Club.[2][5]

Jones and his then-partner, Chris Hennin, worked with the Whitman-Walker Clinic during the HIV/AIDS crisis to develop healthcare programs, educate the public on the illness, and provide support to those diagnosed.[2][4][5][7] In August 1989, he was made head of the Minority Aids Program in D.C.[8]

In 2007, Jones was the chair of the DC Mayor's LGBT Advisory Committee.[5]

Jones-Hennin has remained involved with activism and local politics,[9] and has also spoken out about homophobia in healthcare in recent years.[3][9]

Personal life

Jones realized he was attracted to men early in his life, and initially identified as gay, but chose to marry on the advice of his father.[1][7] He and his wife, who lived in Columbia, Maryland, had three children, but they separated after seven years.[1][4] He maintained joint custody of his children, who have remained supportive of him throughout his life.[7] After the separation, Jones moved to Washington D.C. in 1977;[2] it was in D.C. that he began identifying as bisexual.[1] By 2022, he also identified as queer.[7]

In the late 1970s Jones met his partner and later husband, Chris Hennin, through the Gay Married Men's Association.[1][4][7]

The A in Jones-Hennin's first name comes from a godparent's initial; he chooses to capitalize the first two letters of his name.[4] Jones changed his surname to Jones-Hennin in 2008.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "ABilly S. Jones-Hennin". The Outwords Archive. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Historic Context Statement for Washington's LGBTQ Resources" (PDF). planning.dc.gov. September 2019. pp. 27–28, 49, 105. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Bahrampour, Tara (October 5, 2013). "Gay men, lesbians struggle to find caregivers and old-age facilities that don't discriminate". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 23, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 O'Bryan, Will (2007-10-17). "Past and Present". Metro Weekly. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "ABilly S. Jones-Hennin (2007) · Community Pioneers: Creators of DC's LGBTQ Communities · Rainbow History Project Digital Collections". archives.rainbowhistory.org. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  6. ↑ Beemyn, Genny (November 1, 2017). "The Importance of Place | Perspectives on History". www.historians.org. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Bisexual Activist on Love and Losses During the AIDS Epidemic". AARP. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  8. ↑ "Billy Jones to Head Minority AIDS Program in D.C." BLK. 1 (9): 21. August 1989 – via National Museum of African-American History and Culture.
  9. 1 2 Jr, Lou Chibbaro (2022-05-18). "Capital Stonewall Democrats backs Robert White over Bowser". www.washingtonblade.com. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
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