{"id":19694,"date":"2026-03-06T21:01:55","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T21:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/former-president-barack-obama-speaks-during-final-public-tribute-to-the-late-rev-jesse-jackson\/"},"modified":"2026-03-06T21:01:55","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T21:01:55","slug":"former-president-barack-obama-speaks-during-final-public-tribute-to-the-late-rev-jesse-jackson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/former-president-barack-obama-speaks-during-final-public-tribute-to-the-late-rev-jesse-jackson\/","title":{"rendered":"Former President Barack Obama speaks during final public tribute to the late Rev. Jesse Jackson"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

CHICAGO \u2014 Former President Barack Obama said the presidential runs in the 1980s by the late Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. set the stage for other Black leaders, including himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe message he sent to a 22-year-old child of a single mother with a funny name, an outsider, was that maybe there wasn\u2019t any place or any room where we didn\u2019t belong,\u201d Obama said Friday at a Chicago church as mourners paid a final public tribute for the civil rights legend.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe paved the road for so many others to follow,\u201d Obama said of Jackson.<\/p>\n

Obama is joined by two other former Democratic presidents, Joe Biden and Bill Clinton, at a celebration of life for Jackson. Obama received the loudest round of applause as the three entered the chamber.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are living in a time when it can be hard to hope,\u201d Obama said. \u201cEach day we wake up to some new assault to our democratic institutions. Another setback to the idea of the rule of law, an offense to common decency. Every day you wake up to things you just didn\u2019t think were possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEach day we are told by folks in high office to fear each other,\u201d said Obama, referring to the current Republican leadership in Washington.<\/p>\n

Former Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris is also listed as a speaker on the program, according to the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, the organization that Jackson founded.<\/p>\n

President Donald Trump, who praised Jackson on social media after he died and also shared photos of the two of them together, was not attending the service, according to his public schedule issued by the White House.<\/p>\n

<\/h5>\n
Thousands attend Jackson memorial service<\/h5>\n

The event honors the protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and two-time presidential candidate and follows memorial services that drew large crowds in Chicago and South Carolina, where Jackson was born. Friday\u2019s celebration \u2014 at an influential Black church with a 10,000-seat arena \u2014 is expected to be the largest.<\/p>\n

Crowds of attendees waited in long lines outside the church on the city\u2019s South Side as television screens played excerpts of some of Jackson\u2019s most famous speeches. Inside, vendors sold pins with his 1984 presidential slogan and hoodies with his \u201cI Am Somebody\u201d mantra.<\/p>\n

Along with a slew of Illinois elected leaders, notable attendees included actor and producer Tyler Perry, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and political activist and theologian Cornel West. NBA Hall of Famer and Chicago native Isiah Thomas was one of the speakers.<\/p>\n

Marketing professional Chelsia Bryan said Friday that she decided to attend the memorial service because it was \u201ca chance to be part of something historic.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a Black woman, knowing that someone pretty much gave their life, dedicated their life to make sure I can do the things that I can do now, he\u2019s worth honoring,\u201d Bryan said.<\/p>\n

Jackson Jr.: Everyone welcome<\/h5>\n

Jesse Jackson Jr. said all were welcome to celebrate his father\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

\u201cDemocrat, Republican, liberal, conservative, right wing, left wing because his life is broad enough to cover the full spectrum of what it means to be an American,\u201d Jackson Jr. said last month. \u201cDad would have wanted us to have a great meeting to discuss our differences, to find ways of moving forward and moving together.\u201d<\/p>\n

The elder Jackson died last month at age 84 after battling a rare neurological disorder that affected his mobility and ability to speak. Family members say he continued coming into the office until last year and communicated through hand signals. His final public appearances included the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.<\/p>\n

Sitting in the crowd was 90-year-old Mary Lovett. She said Jackson\u2019s advocacy inspired her many times, from when she moved from Mississippi to Chicago in the 1960s, taught elementary school and became a mom. She twice voted for Jackson during both of his presidential runs and appreciated how he always spoke up for underrepresented people. \u201cHe\u2019s gone, but I hope his legacy lives,\u201d she said. \u201cI hope we can remember what he tried to teach us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson\u2019s service was to the poor, underrepresented<\/h5>\n

Jackson\u2019s pursuits were countless, taking him to all corners of the globe: Advocating for the poor and underrepresented on issues including voting rights, health care, job opportunities and education. He scored diplomatic victories with world leaders, and through Rainbow PUSH Coalition, he channeled cries for Black pride and self-determination into corporate boardrooms, pressuring executives to make America a more open and equitable society.<\/p>\n

His son, Yusef Jackson, who runs the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, recalled how his father carried a well-worn Bible but also showed his faith by showing up to picket lines.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe lived a revolutionary Christian faith rooted in justice, nonviolence and the moral righteousness,\u201d Yusef Jackson said Friday. \u201cHe was deeply involved in the political struggles of his time, but his gift was that he could rise above them. It\u2019s not about the left wing or the right wing. It takes two wings to fly. For him, the goal was always the moral center.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jackson\u2019s services in Chicago and South Carolina drew civic leaders, school groups and everyday people who said they were touched by Jackson\u2019s work, from scholarship programs to advocating for inmates. Several states flew flags at half-staff in his honor.<\/p>\n

Services in Washington, D.C., were tabled after a request to allow Jackson to lie in honor in the United States Capitol rotunda was denied by House Speaker Mike Johnson, who said the space is typically reserved for select officials, including former presidents. Details on a future event have not been made public.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CHICAGO \u2014 Former President Barack Obama said the presidential runs in the 1980s by the late Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. set the stage for other Black leaders, including himself. \u201cThe message he sent to a 22-year-old child of a single mother with a funny name, an outsider, was that maybe there wasn\u2019t any place or […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19694","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19694"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19694\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19694"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19694"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bluelightnews.com\/category\/politics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19694"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}