Jennifer Nelson is a freelance writer and public relations consultant living against her will in the Bay Area.  She spends her days surrounded by vegetarians, peace activists and PETA members.  Unlike her most of her neighbors, Nelson’s cars do not sport a "Barbara Lee speaks for me" nor a  "More trees, less Bush" bumper sticker.From 2003-2005, Nelson wrote a political column for the San Francisco Chronicle’s website, SFGate.com.  Her columns are archived here:  http://www.sfgate.com/columnists/nelson/archive/Before moving to the Bay Area in 2000, Nelson spent twelve years working in a variety of political and policy positions in Sacramento. After running the media operation for the successful Proposition 209 campaign in 1996, she helped former UC Board of Regents member Ward Connerly start his national non-profit organizations, the American Civil Rights Institute and the American Civil Rights Coalition.  These sister organizations help defend California’s Prop. 209 and promote the concept of color-blind government policies in other states and at the national level.Previously, Nelson served two California governors in key policymaking roles.  As an appointee of Governor Pete Wilson at the Health and Welfare Agency, she helped shape the administration’s public affairs strategy on key issues, including immigration and welfare reform, and served as the Statewide Homeless Coordinator. Under Governor George Deukmejian, Nelson served as an assistant director for the Department of Housing and Community Development, after serving for nearly three years as the chief researcher in the Governor's Office.She lives in Oakland with her husband, John, and their three children.