Jesse Jackson (1941-2026)

Rev. Jesse Jackson, longtime civil rights leader and two-time Democratic presidential candidate, died peacefully on Tuesday at 84, after battling a rare neurodegenerative condition. 

Jackson was mentored by Martin Luther King Jr., and became one of the civil rights era's most gifted organizers and orators who sought to "transform the mind of America.” He ran for the Democratic nomination in 1984 and 1988, becoming the first Black candidate to seriously contend for a major party’s nod by building his “Rainbow Coalition" of poor and working-class voters and delivering electrifying convention speeches (like this one).

Jackson later created the Rainbow PUSH Coalition—an organization focused on voting rights, education, and economic equality—and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2000. He is survived by his wife and six children.

PRAY WITH US
God of comfort, draw near to the loved ones and admirers mourning Rev. Jesse Jackson’s death. We thank You for the ways his life and message echoed Your heart for the poor, the overlooked, and the outcast. As we continue our march through history, we bring our longings to You: “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24). 
Amen.