I’m Dr. James R. Jones. I am a sociologist and Assistant Professor at Rutgers. I study race, politics, and culture.

James R. Jones is an Assistant Professor of Africana Studies and Sociology at Rutgers University-Newark. He is also the Director of the Center on Politics and Race in America

 In his scholarly work, he studies racial representation and inequality in American political institutions and centers the career experiences and perspectives of Black government workers. He is author of The Last Plantation, forthcoming from Princeton University Press, which analyzes how racism shapes the US congressional workplace and in return, how Black staffers resist unequal and racist work conditions. He is a leading expert on congressional staff diversity and authored three groundbreaking policy reports on racial representation among Hill staffers.

His writing has appeared in academic journals including Du Bois Review and Sociological Forum, as well as in public outlets including Teen Vogue, The Daily Beast, Newsworks, and The Hill. In addition, his research has been covered by NPR, The Washington Post, and the Atlantic.