Reverend Jesse Jackson passed away this week at the age of 84. Widely known for his second presidential bid in 1988, his legacy has inspired generations and will continue to as someone who always fought against the grain for what’s right. “If I can become president, every woman can. Every man can.”
Reverend Jesse Jackson is leaving behind an inspiring legacy after passing away this week at the age of 84. In 1988, Jackson announced his second presidential bid in Pittsburgh, envisioning a campaign to give America a chance to reflect on what’s truly important. As someone who grew up poor in a segregated South Carolina, Jackson gave a major voice to Black people and the overall fight for equality in the US.
“If I can become president, every woman can. Every man can. I’m giving America a chance to make a choice to fulfill the highest and best of an authentic and honest democracy.”
Now, over 30 years later, Jackson’s message lives on and continues to inspire. Generations of young people have learned and watched his historic campaigns, leading them to become activists, clergy members, civic leaders, lawmakers, and any other role that helps to serve others and bolster communities.
“Here I was, a kid growing up in public housing, and I got to witness this Black man running for president. He gave me a glimpse of what is possible, and he taught me how to say, ‘I am somebody’,” said Democratic Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia.
Warnock is also a senior pastor, and stated that Jackson’s example is something that’s “needed now more than ever.”
“Jackson’s voice is now silent, but his example is eternal, and that work is left to us.”
Jackson’s legacy consists of being a worldwide humanitarian, a voice for a progressive economic planning, and a leader of the Civil Rights Movement which was once led by Martin Luther King Jr., Jackson’s mentor. Jackson was also present when King was assassinated.
When Jackson made his presidential bid in 1988, two decades after King was killed, many Americans were pushed to contemplate whether one of his successors could be in the White House. He led with a message of equality which warmed the hearts of many citizens.
To this day, many strategists credit the messages and leadership Jackson evoked to leading the US to president Barack Obama’s election, and the former president agrees.
In a statement honoring Jackson’s life and legacy, Obama wrote: “[Michelle] got her first glimpse of political organizing at the Jacksons’ kitchen table when she was a teenager, and in his two historic runs for president, he laid the foundation for my own campaign to the highest office in the land.”
DeRay McKesson, a racial justice activist who organized in Ferguson, Missouri as a part of the Black Lives Matter movement, said that Jackson “continued to reach out to young Black activists throughout the protests that started in 2014. As an activist and organizer, I appreciate that Jesse, just like the generation of people he came up with, had a deep understanding of structural change.”
Jackson was heavily involved in the Chicago headquarters of his organization, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, and mentoring many leaders over the past decades. Many activists, political operatives, and members of Congress honored him this week, crediting their careers to him.
“Over the years, since our first meeting, he encouraged me in every step of my political career. His legacy will endure in every life he inspired,” Democratic Representative Troy Carter of Louisiana said.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris eulogized Jackson in a statement where she recalled the interactions she had with Jackson over the years. “They were small interactions, but they exemplified Reverend Jackson’s life work — lifting up the dignity of working people, building community and coalitions, and strengthening our democracy and nation,”
Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, the lone Black Republican in the Senate, wrote on social media about how even though he wouldn’t agree with Jackson on everything, his legacy goes beyond that:
“I don’t have to agree with someone politically to deeply respect the role Jesse Jackson, a South Carolina native, played in uplifting Black voices and inspiring young folks to believe their voices mattered.”
“Those that empower people [like Jackson] to stand taller always leave a lasting mark.”
Tennessee state Representative Justin Pearson thanked Jackson for “creating space for people like [him] to be where [he] is.” Pearson recalled being only 8 when he first learned about Jackson from a picture book on Black history that his mom gave him.
“You have a lot of civil rights elders who you read about, but it means something different when you have somebody who you can talk to, who can be present, who is there physically,” said Tennessee state Representative Justin Jones.
“Jackson was committed to raising the rising generation of civil rights voices and leaders and legislators, and somebody who has a whole movement that is standing on his shoulders.”
Stacey Abrams, former minority leader of the Georgia House and the daughter of ministers, remembers being “transfixed by a larger than life figure who did not look like everyone else.”
“I’ve been one of, I would say, thousands of people who received counsel and support from Jackson, but also got a phone call that said, ‘I’m thinking about you,’ or an offer to come and be a part of something he was doing,” Abrams said.
“I think that’s the legacy that’s most important, that he didn’t stand as a single figure who wanted to be alone. He built community.”
Eric Mastrota is a Contributing Editor at The National Digest based in New York. A graduate of SUNY New Paltz, he reports on world news, culture, and lifestyle. You can reach him at eric.mastrota@thenationaldigest.com.
