Jerry Jones is making the wrong type of headlines this week that exposed him in a bad way back during his teen years.
A photo online shows the Dallas Cowboys owner back in 1957 as one of many White kids trying to block black students from entering a high school. The Washington Post published the photo to show how Jones was in the presence of other white students in Arkansas’ North Little Rock High seemingly trying to prevent African-American teenagers from entering the school.
“Wow, so Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was one of the bullies trying to stop his Black classmates from desegregating Central High in Little Rock in 1957.”
This picture was attached to a column from The Washington Post that said “Jerry Jones helped transform the NFL, except when it comes to race.”
Jones is not pictured at the front of the pack, but rather behind a group of older-looking students. The 80-year-old billionaire said he looked “like a little jerk” in the photo.
“I don’t know that I or anybody anticipated or had a background of knowing … what was involved. It was more a curious thing,” Jones told the Washington Post when asked about why he was there. Details surrounding where he was and how he got there seems to contradict his stated intentions.”
The Washington Post article also questioned why Jerry Jones has never hired a Black head coach since he took over as the Cowboys owner.
The photo may have been taken some 60 years ago, but it’s clear that Jones was capable of changing his views and ideals from those that he had at the time. However, it is still quite shocking to see someone participate in something so racist back then and be an owner of an NFL team that employs many Black players today.
Jerry Jones bought the Cowboys in 1989 and has since transformed the NFL franchise into not just one of the biggest in the league but in all of sports, consistently ranking as among the most expensive sports franchises.
