Cissy Jackson is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, focusing her work on issues of racial justice and equality, voting rights, and law enforcement reform.
Before joining CAP, Jackson served as both counsel and national security adviser to then-Sen. Doug Jones (D) of Alabama. As counsel, she advised the senator on policy, votes, and legislation involving immigration and border security, civil rights, firearms, criminal legal system reform, judicial nominees, impeachment, and the Mueller investigation. In her role as the senator’s national security adviser, Jackson worked with senior Pentagon leadership and defense industry stakeholders to draft and enact the FY 2020 and FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Acts and defense appropriations bills. Among the priorities she successfully pursued were measures to increase support for military families, increase security at military installations, and increase diversity and inclusiveness in the U.S. Department of Defense. In this role, she also served as the senator’s adviser on matters of national security and foreign policy.
Before joining the senator’s staff, Jackson was in the private practice of law, handling white-collar, False Claims Act, grand jury investigations, and commercial property tax appeal matters.
Jackson received her law degree from Vanderbilt University School of Law, where she was a Patrick Wilson Scholar, a member of the editorial staff of the Vanderbilt Law Review, and a member of the Order of the Coif. She graduated with honors from the University of Virginia with a degree in English and American studies.