Rev. William D. Smart Jr.

Rev. William D. Smart Jr. is currently Co-Pastor of the Christ Liberation Ministries in Los Angeles. He also is Director of External Training and Outreach at the Los Angeles Alliance for A New Economy a nationally recognized nonprofit organization. Rev. Smart has pastored CME congregations in Birmingham, Alabama, Apex; North Carolina, Forest City, Arkansas; Jackson, Tennessee Norfolk, Virginia; and Los Angeles, California. In August of 2002-August 2010 he and his wife founded and pastored an independent non-denominational congregation Christ Liberation Ministries.

He started working as a faith-based outreach coordinator with Bill Clinton’s gubernatorial campaign in 1984, and subsequently worked on Clinton’s 1992 and 1996 presidential campaigns. He also served as a clergy outreach coordinator for the Democratic National Committee during the 2000 and 2004 Presidential Campaigns. He recently served as the National Director of African American Clergy Outreach with Hillary Clinton for President Campaign.

Rev. Smart worked as an adjunct professor of world religion and biblical studies at Lane College in Jackson, where he also served as interim Vice President. He was President of the NAACP in Jackson, a Board Member of the SCLC in Birmingham, President of the Forest City Ministerial Alliance and State Director of Economic Development for the NAACP in Tennessee. He served as Co-Chair of the Black-Brown Unity Commission, a Board Member of Community Call to Action in Los Angeles, and currently serves as the Chairman of the Board for Greater Los Angeles Southern Christian Leadership Conference and a national advisory board member of the American Values Network.

Rev. Smart received his B.S. from Miles College in Birmingham, Alabama, and a Master’s of Divinity from Duke University. He lives with his wife, Rev. Thembekila Coleman-Smart, and three children, Gregory Jeremiah, KarmaNia Keturah, and Jehoshua -Jireh in Los Angeles.