Jesse Jackson's early life & powerful quotes that define his legacy | IN PICS

After the death of the US famous civil rights activist, Jesse Jackson, on Tuesday (February 17, 2026), global tributes have been sparked. He was also a key contender for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988. Meanwhile, Jackson's exact cause of death is unknown; however, he had been battling progressive supranuclear palsy, a rare neurological condition, for several years.

Following Martin Luther King's assassination in 1968, Jackson became one of the most successful Black politicians of his generation. After 20 years, Jackson’s second presidential bid, Barack Obama, the first Black president of the United States, paid tribute to him and stated that Jackson helped pave the way for his own historic victory. Obama marked the moment in Chicago, a city closely associated with Jackson.

Jesse Jackson was born Jesse Louis Burns in 1941 to a teenage mother, Helen Burns. He later took the surname of his stepfather, Charles Jackson, while maintaining a relationship with his biological father, Noah L. Robinson. His early experiences with racial inequality shaped a lifelong commitment to justice.

The activism of Jackson began in earnest in 1960 in Greenville, South Carolina, when he led the “Greenville Eight” in a peaceful protest against library segregation, an act that resulted in his first arrest. He studied briefly at the University of Illinois on a football scholarship before transferring to North Carolina A&T, where he earned a degree in sociology.

He later moved to Chicago with his wife, Jacqueline Lavinia Brown, and pursued theological studies, eventually becoming an ordained Baptist minister in 1968 following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. A close associate of King, Jackson joined him in the Selma marches and later headed Operation Breadbasket within the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, focusing on economic empowerment for Black communities. His leadership style, however, sometimes drew criticism, particularly over financial management.

In later decades, Jackson remained active in civil rights causes, from commemorating the Selma marches to supporting Black Lives Matter protests after the killing of George Floyd. His policy vision influenced a new generation of progressive leaders, including Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Despite personal and family scandals, Jackson’s legacy endures as one of expanding political participation, economic justice, and racial equality in the United States.

In 2008, Jesse Jackson initially expressed reservations about Barack Obama’s candidacy, accusing him of distancing himself from Black communities. However, when Obama’s historic victory became clear on November 4, Jackson was present in Chicago’s Grant Park, where his emotional, tearful reaction became an iconic image. Later, in 2017, Jackson developed Parkinson's disease, depriving him of the ability to walk and talk. Four years later, he was admitted to a hospital due to COVID and subsequently spent several weeks in a rehabilitation facility.

1. “At the end of the day, we must go forward with hope and not backwards by fear and division.”
2. “If you fall behind, run faster. Never give up, never surrender, and rise up against the odds.”
3. “Both tears and sweat are salty, but they render a different result. Tears will get you sympathy; sweat will get you change.”
4. “A man must be willing to die for justice. Death is an inescapable reality, and men die daily, but good deeds live forever.”
5. “Time is neutral and does not change things. With courage and initiative, leaders change things.”