Jackson Jesse

American Baptist minister, civil rights leader, writer and businessman. Jackson is a spellbinding political preacher who electrified the 1984 Democratic convention with his famous "tent revival sermon." As candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988, he finished second in the Democratic primaries over Al Gore, Richard Gephardt and Bruce Babbitt in 1988. Jackson is the nations preeminent black activist and his stature as a free-lance ambassador in some Third World countries has been extremely impressive on the international stage. He has the ability to mediate high-profile releases of prisoners where other diplomats have failed. Jackson writes a weekly editorial column that appears in 80 newspapers around the U.S. and addresses a daily radio program. A preacher of hymns and chants that stress black pride in America, he won a 1988 Grammy award for best spoken-word recording. Jackson was born out-of-wedlock from a poor mother. As a child, people called him "bastard." When his mother married postal employee, Henry Jackson, Jesse took his stepfathers name as his own. An outstanding athlete, Jackson played many sports in school. He went on to attend the University of Illinois in 1959 but left in 1960. He transferred to the Agricultural and Technical College in Greensboro, North Carolina and was the star quarterback for the football team. He was president of his student body and offered a professional football position with the New York Giants. In 1964, he earned his B.A. in sociology and economics. In 1965, he won a scholarship to the Chicago Theological Seminary. He became a civil rights activist and protégé of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and worked with him for two years until Kings death on 4/04/1968. Jackson became an ordained Baptist minister in 1968. He gradually moved away from Kings Southern Christian Leadership Conference. In 1971 Jackson founded PUSH, The People United to Save Humanity, a Chicago-based civil rights group concerned with the well-being of the nations inner cities. By the end of the 70s, Jackson had become virtually the only sole national voice of African-Americans in the U.S. An imposing and magnetic speaker with a dominating presence Jackson amazed the country in 1984 with his run for the presidency. He preached for racial cooperation, "Rainbow Coalition" and economic hope for everyone, "Keep Hope Alive." He helped register millions of blacks and galvanized major black voting blocks for Democratic political candidates for mayoral seats and governorships. In the late 1970s, Jackson began his forays into the international diplomacy scene upsetting the Reagan and Bush administrations with his visits to PLO leader Yassir Arafat. In 1984, Jacksons diplomacy won the release of American flyer, Lt. Robert O. Goodman, Jr. from Syria. On 5/2/1999, Jackson won the release of three American servicemen by meeting with Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic. While the families of captives praise his actions, others have called Jackson a "publicity seeker." Jackson successfully mediates numerous disputes in the United States between workers and management. In January 1999, he prodded Seattle firm aircraft manufacturer, Boeing Co. to settle two class action discrimination lawsuits brought on by African American workers. In Cambridge, Massachusetts he quoted the Bible and scolded Harvard University for its unfair labor practices to the maids, cooks and technical workers. Jacks Read less