Thousands gathered in Chicago on Friday at a memorial service for the the Rev. Jesse Jackson, honoring the life and legacy of the influential civil rights leader.
Jackson, a longtime ally of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and the founder of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, spent decades advocating for civil rights, economic justice and voting rights. Jackson’s presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988 helped mobilize millions of voters and broadened the Democratic Party’s coalition.
Friday’s service for Jackson, who died Feb. 17 at age 84, was held in Chicago. Several prominent political figures were in attendance, including former Presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. Former Vice President Kamala Harris, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson were among others who gave remarks.
‘An optimist at his core’
Jackson’s funeral marked the culmination of a week of remembrance for someone who helped shape modern civil rights activism and expanded political participation among marginalized communities.
He was remembered as strong-minded, wise and ambitious, as well as an inspiration, as people echoed his call to “keep hope alive.”
In his tribute, Clinton made clear that he was speaking in a capacity “more as a friend than a former president.” Clinton conceded that their views hadn’t always aligned, but Jackson “made me a better president when I got in office” because Jackson pushed him on important issues.
“He was a born leader,” Obama said, as he ticked through a lengthy list of Jackson’s accomplishments, such as helping to register millions of voters and his efforts to fight against bias in the criminal justice system.
Obama celebrated Jackson for paving “the road for so many others to follow” — and credited him for creating a road for his presidency.
“It was because of that path that he had laid, because of his courage, his audacity, that two decades later, a young Black senator from Chicago South Side would even be taken seriously as a candidate for the presidential nomination,” Obama said.
Obama highlighted the key role Jackson played in challenging the Democratic Party’s “winner-take-all” primary system during his 1984 presidential campaign, which Obama said helped “underdogs and outsiders like Bill Clinton or Bernie Sanders” remain competitive in presidential races and “build momentum instead of getting knocked out early.”
Jackson, Obama said, “made you believe that if we came together, we could make the world work better.”
Biden described Jackson as “determined and tenacious,” and said his passion was his most admirable trait.
“Jesse was dedicated with every fiber in his being to redeeming the soul of America,” said Biden, who added later that Jackson was “an optimist at his core.”
Obama and Biden both criticized the current administration as they urged people to follow Jackson’s example of propelling the nation forward.
“Each day, we’re told by those in high office to fear each other, and to turn on each other, and that some Americans count more than others — and that some don’t even count at all,” Obama said, minutes before Biden said the Trump administration “doesn’t share any of the values that we have.”
‘He did not waste time waiting’
Harris, who sought to become the country’s first woman to serve as president, highlighted Jackson’s efforts to break barriers.
“Reverend Jackson was impatient,” she said. “He did not waste time waiting, even when the doors in front of him were barred and bolted, even if those on the other side hesitated or even ignored him. He always devised a way through.”
Harris took a dig at the Trump administration herself, telling attendees that she had “predicted a lot about what’s happening right now.”
“I’m not into saying I told you so, but we did see it coming,” she said. “But what I did not predict is that we would not have Jesse Jackson with us right now to help us get through this.”
During a tribute to his father, Yusef Jackson pledged to continue the Rainbow PUSH Coalition and advance its founding principles.
“While he would be delighted to witness this gathering of friends and allies … he would be intent that we stay the course and carry on the struggle for justice,” he said.
Ebony Davis is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked at CNN as a campaign reporter covering elections and politics.