John J. Johnson was born February 10, 1945 in Louisville, Kentucky. His lifetime of leadership started at age 17, when he became the youngest president of any Kentucky chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP).
Johnson worked in a factory after his high school graduation. He then served as coordinator of training services for the Kentucky Institute for Community Development . In 1969 he accepted a position as director of operations for a national marketing and research firm based in New York. He returned to Kentucky and worked with several War on Poverty programs before assuming the position as associate director of the Louisville and Jefferson County Human Relations Commission. He was later appointed director of community services for the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights. In 1984, he became the director of the Louisville and Jefferson County Community Action Agency until he joined the staff of the national NAACP in Baltimore.
His volunteer work faced many challenges, from integrating the segregated swimming pool in his hometown of Franklin, to challenging issues such as divestment of Kentucky’s interest in South Africa. He served as Kentucky state president of the NAACP for 14 years, increasing Kentucky NAACP branches from four to forty-two. He served as an elected member of the NAACP’s national Board of Directors where he was elected one of its Vice Presidents. Johnson served as chair of the Kentucky Coalition of Conscience, member of the Urban League, KY chapter of the National Association of Human Rights Workers and Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He moderated a weekly radio program entitled Louisville Forum,and wrote a column for the Louisville Defender weekly paper entitled Advocacy Line. Johnson’s work in civil and human rights led to a street named after him, John J. Johnson Avenue in his home town in1993.
At the NAACP, Johnson served as Chief Programs Officer directing programs, including Armed Services and Veterans Affairs; Education, Health ; Voter Empowerment; Economic Outreach; Labor; Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO); the Prison Project; and the NAACP library, among others. He worked internationally, organizing a trip to Germany in 1992 where he led the NAACP delegation which conducted hearings on alleged discrimination against African American military personnel. In 1999, Johnson returned to Germany at the United States Army’s behest , visiting five United States military installations to address service personnel as a part of the ceremony for Martin Luther King, Jr’s 70th birthday.’ Johnson visited East Africa to help promote global democracy. In 2002, during Zimbabwe’s Presidential Election, Johnson’s NAACP delegation was the only American organization invited to work as independent observers. Johnson role at the national office continued to expand and he eventually became the NAACP’s Chief Executive of Operations, where he oversaw the executive office operations for the President and CEO.
Johnson earned a Bachelors of Art degree in community development from Sojourner Douglas College in Baltimore and has received numerous awards and honors, including an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Simmons University for civil rights and community development , a “Distinguished Service Award” from Kentucky State University; the Kentucky Southern Christian Leadership Conference Annual “Civil Rights Leadership Award” the prestigious “Distinguished Service in Social Action National Award” from the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. and the Medger Evers Award for Outstanding Service, Sincere Devotion and Commitment to the NAACP. He serves on the National Board of Directors for the A. Philip Randolph Institute, the Board of Directors of the National Committee on Pay Equity and the National Board of Directors of the Association for Quality Education and the National Coalition on Black Civic Participation. He is chair of the Advisory Board of the National Great Blacks In Wax Museum Inc.
Johnson joined the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights on September 4, 2007. He was appointed by unanimous decision by the Board of Commissioners of the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights to serve as the state agency's Executive Director.
He and his wife, Courtrina, reside in Louisville.