ASALH Celebrates the Life and Legacy of Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr.
The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) mourns the loss and celebrates the life and legacy of civil rights icon Rev. Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. He was the founder and long-time leader of the Operation PUSH (People United to Serve Humanity), and through its affiliates (also founded by Jackson) influenced the educational landscape and the automotive, finance, entertainment, and sports industries. He was a protege of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., worked with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), and ran for the United States presidency in 1984 and 1988. Books have been written, and courses have been taught on the political impact of his ’84 and ’88 presidential runs on our political landscape.
Rev. Jackson was an ordained Baptist minister. He nurtured the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, formed by merging Operation PUSH and the Rainbow Coalition. Following the merger, he worked to transform opportunities for people of color in human rights. As our “Young Lion,” Rev. Jackson championed Black political and economic empowerment, exemplified by the 1972 National Black Political Convention in Gary, Indiana, and the call “What time is it?”
Born in Greenville, SC, in 1941, he began his lifelong pursuit of social justice during the 1960s. At age 19, Jackson formed a group dubbed “The Greenville Eight.” On July 16, 1960, Jackson and seven other students staged a sit-in at the white-only Greenville (SC) Public Library and were arrested. As a result of their arrests, the Greenville libraries were ultimately desegregated.
As an international diplomat, he fought to end apartheid in South Africa and negotiated the release of foreign prisoners, including Americans held in Cuba and a U.S. Naval Pilot held by Syria, just to name a few. He was the recipient of the Legion of Honor, France’s highest civilian award for negotiating the release of French citizens.
A dynamic and charismatic personality, Rev. Jackson was one of our great orators for more than half a century. He was a longtime supporter of ASALH and received our Living Legacy Award in 2024. Rev. Jackson instilled hope in American youth of all walks of life, teaching them never to limit their dreams and ambitions for a better life and nation. The master of the soundbite, Rev. Jackson, preached in mantras, getting everyone to repeat, “I am somebody,” and getting a weary nation to remember to “Keep hope alive.” Until his last days, he fought valiantly for social justice and humanity.