- Title: 'He was a voice of hope'. Thousands honor civil rights leader Jesse Jackson
- Date: 26th February 2026
- Summary: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES (FEBRUARY 26, 2026) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (English) MARCUS FIZER, PAID RESPECTS TO JESSE JACKSON, SAYING: "As soon as I walked into that presence, I broke down and cried. And everybody from the family took my hand and they said, 'He did it for you'. So, it was heavy. It was really heavy. And if you have any heart and if you have any soul, i
- Embargoed:
- Keywords: AFRICA AFRICAN AMERICA AMERICAN BLACK CHICAGO CIVIL COALITION EQUALITY HONORABLE JACKSON JESSE JUSTICE LAY LAYING LEADER PRESIDENT PUSH RAINBOW REPOSE REVEREND RIGHT RIGHTS SHARPTON SOMEBODY TRUMP
- Location: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES
- City: CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES
- Country: US
- Topics: North America,Society/Social Issues
- Reuters ID: LVA002896526022026RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Memorial events honoring the life and legacy of civil rights leader Jesse Jackson began Thursday (February 26) in Chicago, Illinois, drawing elected officials, advocates and community members to celebrate a man whose decades-long activism reshaped American politics
+++01 week at the age of 84, was an inspirational orator and longtime Chicagoan who ran for the Democratic U.S. presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988.
Thousands of people waited outside in frigid temperatures to pay their respects to Jackson as he lay in repose at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition's headquarters.
Some said it was an emotional experience seeing Jackson.
"As soon as I walked into that presence, I broke down and cried," said Marcus Fizer. "Everybody from the family took my hand and they said, 'He did it for you'. So, it was heavy. It was really heavy."
Born in Greenville, South Carolina, Jackson became one of the most recognizable Black political leaders of the late 20th century. He advocated for sanctions against apartheid in South Africa, negotiated the release of American hostages abroad and championed corporate accountability and minority business development at home.
Jackson built a political movement centered on economic justice and coalition-building across racial and class lines. His two presidential campaigns mobilized millions of new voters under the banner of the “Rainbow Coalition,” pushing the Democratic Party to address issues affecting working-class Americans, farmers and communities of color.
"He believed in equality for everybody," said Ollistine Jude-Weathersby.
A close ally of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., Jackson rose to prominence as a young organizer in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He accompanied King in Memphis in 1968 to support striking African-American sanitation workers before the late civil rights leader was assassinated.
"He was picking up where Martin Luther King left off," said Darrell Roberts. "He was right there when Martin Luther King was murdered and became a huge civil rights icon for Black people, and all people in general when it comes to equality."
(Production: Eric Cox) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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