Jesse Jackson Sr., the longtime civil rights leader and Rainbow/PUSH founder, was honored in Chicago on Thursday as his cross-country memorial services began in the city he called home. A line of mourners entered a Chicago auditorium to pay final respects to Jackson as family members gathered and the casket was brought into the Rainbow PUSH Coalition’s orbit of public life in the late civil-rights era.
The body was scheduled to lie in repose at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters in Chicago for two days, with the memorial program moving next to Washington, D.C., and then to South Carolina, where Jackson was born. The agenda outlined by the family and Rainbow PUSH placed the early emphasis on Chicago, the place where Jackson lived for decades and raised his six children, including a son who is a congressman.
As the casket arrived inside the brick headquarters, family members wiped away tears while flowers lined the sidewalks outside. People waiting to enter watched a large screen playing video excerpts of Jackson’s speeches, and some raised their fists in solidarity. Inside, Jackson’s children, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, and the Rev. Al Sharpton stood by the open casket to greet those coming to view the body.
Sharpton, speaking to reporters, emphasized that Jackson’s message must outlast the mourning. “The challenge for us is that we’ve got to make sure that all he lived for was not in vain,” Sharpton said. He added that Dr. King’s dream and Jesse Jackson’s mission “now falls on our shoulders” and that they “We’ve got to stand up and keep it going.”
Mayor Brandon Johnson also issued remarks that tied the memorial period to the local meaning of Jackson’s legacy. In a statement, Johnson honored Jackson and his “hard-earned legacy as a freedom fighter, philosopher, and faithful shepherd of his family and community here in Chicago,” and said Jackson’s mission now has to carry forward.
Jackson died last week at age 84 after battling a rare neurological disorder that affected his mobility and ability to speak in his later years. The AP reported that memorial expressions came from around the globe, and that several U.S. states, including Minnesota, Iowa and North Carolina, flew flags at half-staff in Jackson’s honor. Chicago itself marked Jackson with bouquets left outside the family’s Tudor-style South Side home and public tributes that included school condolences and train digital screens displaying his portrait and the mantra, “I am Somebody!”
Plans for the rest of the memorial route included services in Washington and South Carolina, with a South Carolina Statehouse observance scheduled next week before public services there. The governor’s office said Thursday that South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster’s participation had not yet been confirmed, according to the memorial agenda.
The memorial plans also included a reference to a request that was denied for an additional venue. The services will not include Jackson lying in honor at the U.S. Capitol rotunda, after a request for the commemoration was denied by the House Speaker Mike Johnson’s office as MSI previously reported. Details on the Washington events had not been made public as of Thursday.
As people of multiple generations filled the auditorium, including toddlers and elderly attendees, the services included prayers from well-known religious leaders, including Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich. Video clips of Jackson’s appearances at news conferences, on the campaign trail and even on “Sesame Street” were also shown inside.
Ahead of the start of the services, Jackson’s eldest son, Jesse Jackson Jr., said the family viewed the public attention as a chance to bridge differences. “Our family is overwhelmed and overjoyed by the amazing amount of support being offered by common, ordinary people who our father’s life has come into contact with,” he said. “This is a unique opportunity to lay down some of the political rhetoric and to lay down some of the division that deeply divides our country and to reflect upon a man who brought people together.” The family said the services would be open to all, and one Chicago retiree, Claudette Redic, said her family hoped to keep that support going.