Jackson Jr. recognized the full scope and character of his father's mission as the country preacher who brought "a consistent prophetic voice" to struggles for economic and social and racial justice, and peace, over the course of more than six decades in the public eye.
When the optimism of the early movement had begun to fade, and leadership had begun to fracture, and when the country seemed to have grown bored, gotten weary of the idea of justice and equality, and moved on to other concerns, Obama said, Reverend Jackson rose above despair, and kept that righteous flame alive.
Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. took a chance on me as a 19-year-old college student. At that age, as an intern in 2009, I should've been pouring coffee, maybe making copies. Instead, he put me to work on college affordability policy, youth violence prevention, and immigration reform at his Rainbow PUSH (People United to Serve Humanity) Coalition on the South Side of Chicago.
Jackson later built Operation Breadbasket and Rainbow PUSH Coalition, fusing economic pressure with political organizing. While based in Chicago, these efforts sought to shift corporate and political power across the South. Gillespie told Axios Jackson understood that economic leverage and democratic power were intertwined, particularly in Southern states where Black voters made up a significant share of Democratic primary electorates. Zoom out: Jackson's presidential bids in 1984 and 1988 demonstrated the pivotal role of Southern Black voters in Democratic primaries, Gillespie said.
