James Joyce III
Civil Rights Activist, Social Entrepreneur, and Founder of Coffee with a Black Guy
James Joyce III, Founder of Coffee with a Black Guy
James Joyce III is a civil rights activist and founder of Coffee with a Black Guy. Into its fourth year, CWABG serves as a safe place for interactive, community conversations about a variety of issues from the perspective of a black man. It's been a growing, grassroots effort hosted by Joyce and his team to help put an end to racism. Simply put: Coffee. Connection. Conversation. For these efforts and more, the Ventura County branch of the NAACP awarded Joyce with their 2018 Distinguished Citizen Award. It's bestowed upon an individual whose groundbreaking work increases understanding and awareness of racial and social issues. Forbes also featured Joyce and his work with CWABG in a piece published during the Covid-19 outbreak. Joyce was recognized for his outstanding leadership in aiding anti-racist conversations even during a worldwide pandemic. He's also served as a guest speaker for the NAACP chapter of Ventura County during their solidarity rally for George Floyd.
For much of the past decade, Joyce also served as District Director for State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson, who represented nearly 1 million constituents within Santa Barbara and Ventura counties until terming out in Dec. 2020. In that role, Joyce was responsible for the day-to-day operations representing the Senator and her work. Known as a sturdy leader and champion for justice, Joyce has served on various advisory boards in the area including Impact Hub Santa Barbara, the Ventura County Leadership Academy, and the Santa Barbara Young Black Professionals.
Joyce is also on the board for the Common Table Foundation (formerly the Lois and Walter Capps Project), the California Association of Marriage & Family Therapist Education Foundation, as well as the national board for Student African American Brotherhood (SAAB), where he helped found the collegiate chapter while a student-athlete at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio.
Prior to working in the public service sector, Joyce, a Maryland-native, served as a newspaper journalist in several diverse communities across the country covering a variety of subjects; from education to crime, local politics, features and more. An award-winning journalist, Joyce is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and currently serves on the executive board of the Xi Iota Lambda Alumni Chapter, seated in Camarillo, CA. You can learn more about the impact he's making and upcoming events at www.CWABG.com
“I will say that it is James’ humanity, his sense of fairness, and kindness, and his preternatural ability to connect with all kinds of people that in my mind make him uniquely qualified to facilitate some of the most difficult, complicated and important conversations of our lifetime,” Gwyn Lurie, CEO & Executive Editor of the Montecito Journal Media Group.
https://youtu.be/yExqCvkiknc
"At the City Council level, Sneddon feels challenged to push harder for affordable housing because of CWABG and said attending events primed her to address the demands of Black Lives Matter protesters in June. “Having that sort of conversation ahead of time made it so that it wasn’t surprising when that conversation came to City Council,” she said. “It was more like, ‘Okay, these are people I have seen speak; this is an experience I’ve been hearing about. It’s not a reactionary moment to one event nationally; this has been going on and needs to be addressed.’” — Dec. 17, 2020 article in the Santa Barbara Independent, comments from Santa Barbara City Council member Kristen Sneddon.
https://www.independent.com/2020/12/17/amid-pandemic-conditions-coffee-with-a-black-guy-keeps-up-the-conversation/
View James' LinkedIn Page: www.linkedin.com/in/james-joyce-iii-00157239
Approved Press Photos
Photo by: Ricardo Harris-Sanchez | @picture_me_roaming
Photo by: Ricardo Harris-Sanchez | @picture_me_roaming
Timothy Teague Photography
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Timothy Teague Photography
Photo by Tyler Batson | @tylerbatson
Timothy Teague Photography
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