US civil rights leader Jesse Jackson dies at 84, leaving legacy of political firsts
The Baptist minister’s two presidential runs helped lay the groundwork for the election of America’s first black president, Barack Obama
“Our father was a servant leader – not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world,” the Jackson family said.
Jackson, an inspirational orator and long-time Chicagoan, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2017.
Jackson had a three-pronged career of civil rights, liberal missions and political activism, and his two White House bids in the 1980s helped lay the groundwork for the election of America’s first black president two decades later.
A dynamic black orator and a successful mediator in international disputes, Jackson was present for many consequential moments in the long battle for racial justice in the United States.