| Jesse Jackson, fiery icon of civil rights |
The Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks to the Democratic National Convention in L.A. in 2000. Photo: Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty ImagesThe Rev. Jesse Jackson, a civil rights icon who spent his career fighting racial inequality and injustice, and who made two historic runs for the presidency, died today, his family said in a statement. He was 84. Jackson leaves behind an expansive legacy, starting with his time alongside Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to founding Operation Rainbow PUSH on the South Side of Chicago, Axios’ Justin Kaufmann, Delano Massey and Russell Contreras write. “Part of what makes America great is the right to fight for your rights,” Jackson told Axios’ Justin Kaufmann on WGN Radio in 2015. “You can change America. It’s like putty. You can reshape it.” Jesse Jackson (left) with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1966. Photo: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty ImagesThe civil rights pioneer grew up in Greenville, S.C., and after college joined King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Jackson ran for president in 1984 and 1988, becoming the first major Black candidate to mount a nationwide campaign, finishing second to Michael Dukakis in the 1988 Democratic primary. Jackson also played a pivotal role in Barack Obama’s presidential campaign in 2008. “The night when President Obama was declared the winner,” Jackson reflected in 2015, “I stood there and cried, in part because we’d won the big one, but also because it was the movement that made it possible.”Full obituary … Jackson’s life in photos. |
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The Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks to the Democratic National Convention in L.A. in 2000. Photo: Paul J. Richards/AFP via Getty Images
Jesse Jackson (left) with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1966. Photo: Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images