Van Jones made a shocking discovery about his family history that he finds could explain why he is the person he is today.
The CNN host was blown away when he found out that his third great-grandfather beat slavery and the system.
He appeared on season nine of the PBS show “Finding Your Roots,” hosted by Henry Louis Gates Jr. The show traces the family history of its guests. Jones discovered that his third great-grandfather, Mark Kirkendall, created his own path to freedom.
Jones is a native of Jackson, Tennessee, and the father of two sons. The CNN political commentator has appeared frequently on CNN and hosted “The Van Jones Show” for the network. He also hosted an eight-part docuseries on CNN called “The Redemption Project” that followed different journeys of victims who come face-to-face with the person that committed the crime to them or their family member. In addition, he is a three-time New York Times bestselling author.
Gates showed that Jones’ third great-grandfather Mark Kirkendall was listed in the Census of Douglas Township, Arkansas, in 1850, with his wife and three children. This, according to Gates, was unusual because “almost no African-Americans were” listed by name in the federal Census during those times. They were only listed by age, color and gender. Gates informed Jones that the Kirkendall family was free 13 years before the Emancipation Proclamation.
“They didn’t need Lincoln to free them. They got free on their own,” said Jones in the episode. “Yeah, I like that.”
Kirkendall’s story, Gates said, can be traced to a will of an Arkansas farmer named Joseph Kuykendall. The will stated that if those Kuykendall held as slaves paid $800 to his sons, that person would receive freedom from slavery.
Jones’ third great-grandfather took an alternative route and killed one of Joseph’s sons, Benjamin Kuykendall. The killing was allegedly done in self-defense. Kirkendall was then…
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