The Reverend Jesse Jackson, a towering figure in American civil rights, a Baptist minister, and a two-time presidential candidate, has passed away at the age of 84, his family announced on a Tuesday. The family's statement hailed his profound impact, declaring, "Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world." They emphasized his "unwavering belief in justice, equality, and love," and his tireless work to shape a global movement for freedom and dignity, leaving an indelible mark on history.

Jackson's illustrious career spanned over six decades, characterized by a three-pronged commitment to civil rights, liberal missions, and political activism. Born Jesse Louis Burns on October 8, 1941, in Greenville, South Carolina, to an unwed teen mother and a former professional boxer, he later adopted the surname of his stepfather, Charles Jackson. He often reflected on his humble beginnings, stating, "I was not born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I had a shovel programmed for my hands." He excelled in his segregated high school and pursued higher education, initially at the University of Illinois on a football scholarship before transferring to the predominantly Black Agricultural and Technical College of North Carolina, where he earned a sociology degree. He also pursued divinity studies at Chicago Theological Seminary.

His journey into activism began early, participating in his first sit-in in Greenville in 1960. He rose to national prominence in the 1960s as a close associate of Martin Luther King Jr., joining the Selma-to-Montgomery civil rights marches in 1965 and later becoming a leader in King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Jackson was present in Memphis in 1968 when King was tragically assassinated. King himself praised Jackson's leadership of SCLC’s economic empowerment program, Operation Breadbasket, noting, "we knew he was going to do a good job, but he’s done better than a good job."

Jackson further solidified his commitment to social justice by launching two significant organizations: Operation PUSH in 1971 and the National Rainbow Coalition a dozen years later. These groups merged in 1996, forming the influential Rainbow/PUSH coalition dedicated to civil rights and social justice. His political ambitions led him to make two groundbreaking bids for the Democratic presidential nomination, in 1984 and 1988. In 1984, he finished third in the Democratic primaries, garnering over 18 percent of the primary vote and several victories, becoming the most successful Black presidential candidate until Barack Obama's election. Four years later, he improved his performance, coming in second to nominee Michael Dukakis and winning 11 primaries and caucuses. His powerful "common ground" speech at the 1988 convention, where he notably attacked the "reverse Robin Hood" policies of the Reagan presidency, captured national attention and played a crucial role in making African American issues central to the Democratic Party platform, laying groundwork for future political advancements.

Beyond domestic politics, Jackson emerged as a prominent mediator and envoy on the international stage. He was a vocal advocate for ending apartheid in South Africa, campaigning for US sanctions against the regime and calling for the release of political prisoners like Nelson Mandela. In the 1990s, he served as President Bill Clinton’s special envoy for Africa. His humanitarian missions successfully secured the release of numerous Americans detained abroad, including a US Navy pilot from Syria in 1984, at least 16 Americans from Cuba the same year, 700 women and children from Iraq in 1990, and three US soldiers from Yugoslavia in 1999, an act for which Clinton awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2000. However, some of his international engagements, such as meeting with Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez in 2005 and speaking at his funeral in 2013, drew criticism.

In his later years, Jackson continued to be a vocal presence in contemporary politics, criticizing figures like former President Donald Trump and endorsing Senator Bernie Sanders in the 2020 presidential race. He was also present at consequential moments for racial justice, openly weeping as Barack Obama celebrated his 2008 election and standing with George Floyd's family in 2021 after the conviction of Floyd's killer. His health began to decline; he publicly announced his battle with Parkinson’s disease in 2017 and had also lived for over a decade with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), a rare neurological disorder affecting mobility and swallowing. He had been hospitalized in November prior to his passing. Despite his health challenges, his family urged the world to honor his memory by continuing the fight for the values he championed.

While his accomplishments were pioneering, Jackson’s career was not without controversy. In 1984, he faced widespread criticism for using a pejorative term for Jewish people, "Hymietown," to describe New York City, for which he later issued an emotional public apology after initial denial. Additionally, his son, former US congressman Jesse Jackson Jr., served prison time after pleading guilty in 2013 to misusing campaign funds.