A look at Jesse Jackson’s decades of civil rights advocacy

Jeff Bennett:

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, civil rights leader and two-time presidential candidate, died peacefully this morning at the age of 84. He was remembered for decades of activism.

“Our father was a servant-leader, not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the neglected around the world,” his family wrote in part.

From the civil rights movement of the 1960s, to protests against police brutality nearly six decades later…

Rev. Jesse Jackson, founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition:

We are all precious to God.

Jeff Bennett:

…Jesse Jackson was one of the nation’s most prominent civil rights activists and a political pioneer. His historic attempts to reach the White House in the 1980s sparked a movement.

Pastor Jesse Jackson:

I see America’s face red, yellow, brown, black, and white. We are all precious in the eyes of God, True Rainbow Alliance.

Jeff Bennett:

Jesse Jackson was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina, where he attended racially segregated schools. His first major protest was in 1960, where he was one of eight students who staged a sit-in at the local whites-only library.

While attending North Carolina A&T, a historically black institution, he continued to participate in protests against segregated corporations. After graduating, he moved to Chicago to attend Chicago Theological Seminary. He eventually dropped out to focus on the civil rights movement.

During this time, he met and worked with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Jackson was one of hundreds who marched from Selma to Montgomery, and soon after began organizing in Chicago for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Jackson became close to Dr. King and soon became a member of his inner circle.

On the night of Dr. King’s assassination, Jackson was with him in Memphis and witnessed the shooting. This moment would shape the rest of his career.

Pastor Jesse Jackson:

He was not just dreaming of the privatized idea of ​​the content of character, not skin colour. He dreamed up the idea of ​​public policy once the law was changed. He used his faith to challenge the law.

Jeff Bennett:

After Dr. King’s death, Jackson became involved in many debates and disagreements about how to handle the future of the civil rights movement.

Pastor Jesse Jackson:

We’ll be shot in the back anyway!

Jeff Bennett:

He eventually left the Southern Christian Leadership Conference to launch his own organization, Operation PUSH, dedicated to improving economic conditions in black communities across the country.

Pastor Jesse Jackson:

We are upset. We don’t like that. Cut us or cut him.

Jeff Bennett:

The group received national attention for pressuring major corporations to hire more African Americans, sometimes by threatening boycotts.

Pastor Jesse Jackson:

I am simply challenging the party.

Jeff Bennett:

Jackson decided to break away from the group in the early 1980s to influence politics in a different way, and ran for leadership. In 1983, he announced his first election campaign to reach the White House. He said his campaign is not just about winning the nomination, but about fighting for the rights of the so-called diverse rainbow coalition of Americans.

Pastor Jesse Jackson:

America is like a quilt: many patches, many pieces, many colors, many sizes, all woven and held together by a common thread.

Jeff Bennett:

While critics wrote him off as a fringe candidate, he finished third in the Democratic primary. He announced his second bid for the White House in 1988 and achieved more success. Jackson won the primaries and caucuses in 11 states and refused to drop out of the race until the convention.

In the end he finished second in the race. This was the first time a black candidate was widely viewed as a strong contender for the presidency.

The late former PBS News Hour anchor Gwen Ifill covered it for The Washington Post.

Gwen Ifill, former anchor of “PBS News Hour”: The most chaotic, innovative, creative campaign ever, because he would just show up at places and could draw crowds.

Jeff Bennett:

Jackson remained a prominent presence in American politics, serving as one of the first senators in Washington, D.C., a position that primarily advocated statehood for D.C. He also met frequently with foreign leaders.

He negotiated the release of dozens of hostages during wars and conflicts, often without the approval of presidents or Congress. In 2007, when fellow Chicago Democrat Barack Obama announced his run for the White House, Jackson endorsed him. Their relationship became complicated at times over the course of the campaign.

But at Obama’s victory rally, Jackson was in tears over the historic election of the country’s first black president. Jesse Jackson’s family followed in his political footsteps. One of his sons, Jesse Jackson Jr., represented Illinois in Congress for more than 15 years, before stepping down in 2012 after being indicted and eventually convicted of defrauding campaign donors.

Another son, Jonathan Jackson, now represents Illinois in Congress. Jackson has had several health scares in recent years. He was admitted to the hospital in November to treat a neurodegenerative condition called progressive supranuclear palsy, or PSP, which was initially diagnosed as Parkinson’s disease in 2017.

But despite health setbacks, Jesse Jackson continued his advocacy work, including participating in Black Lives Matter protests and being arrested during demonstrations and sit-ins in support of social justice issues.