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To say Reverend Jesse Jackson, who passed away this week, was a towering figure, would be a profound understatement. He was all that and much more. I think he spent his whole life living out the quote he is best known for: “Keep hope alive.”
Today I would like to extend my deep condolences to Rev. Jesse Jackson’s wife Jacqueline, and to his family and loved ones, and to all around the world who shared his passion for peace and justice, and in whose hearts his global message of brotherhood so deeply resonated.
Although I met him briefly, I never really had the opportunity to know Rev Jackson personally. We had many mutual African [American] friends, such as Rev. Andrew Young and the late John Lewis, whom I also met and deeply respected.
One of my earliest passions in life was learning the history and life of African Americans, which led me to read books by and about the greatest heroes like Frederick Douglass, Harriet Tubman, and of course, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. If you have read the story of Dr. King, you will soon get to know about Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rev. Andrew Young, amongst others.
I will never forget the day Jesse Jackson announced that he would run for President of the United States. This was decades before Barack Obama did so successfully. Jesse Jackson first ran for president in 1984, a time when the very idea of a black person running for US President was unthinkable… and he ran not just once but again in 1988.
Martin Luther King Jr., Jesse Jackson, and Andrew Young [who continues to carry the legacy today] have at least one thing in common: They were all ordained as ministers of the Gospel, and would often return to the pulpit at weekends to preach.
The best way to honour people like Jesse Jackson, who was passionate about Africa, and fought side by side with our own greatest leaders during the independence movement, is to order books [today] and learn about them, and to make sure your children do, too.
The history of African Americans, Afro-Caribbeans, and black peoples of Latin America is part of the history of our broader African Nation.
Reflecting on Rev. Jesse Jackson’s call decades ago to “keep hope alive,” especially as entrepreneurs here on this platform, let us continue to #ReimagineHope, #SowHope, and #GrowHope too, wherever we may be, with whatever is in our own hands.
Selah.
Image credits: Alamy
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