Jesse Jackson is a civil rights activist, minister, and politician. Jesse Jackson marched with Martin Luther King Jr. and was at the hotel with King when he was assassinated in 1968. After King’s death, Jackson continued to fight for black civil rights through the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). When Jackson split from SCLC in 1971, he formed Operation PUSH (People United to Serve Humanity). Operation PUSH goal was pressure to politicians to improve economic opportunities for blacks and the poor.
Operation PUSH organized boycotts against corporations such as Anheuser Busch beer, Coca-Cola, and CBS affiliates. The purpose of the boycotts were to make them hire and promote blacks and black businesses. Due to his increased public influence and success with politicians and boycotts, Jesse Jackson ran for President of the United States in 1984. While he was not seen as a threat, Jackson did manage to gain more votes than Joe Biden who was a Democratic ballot competitor. Jackson lost in 3rd place to Democrat Walter Mondale and Mondale lost to incumbent Republican Ronald Reagan.
Keeping hope alive, Jesse Jackson ran for President again in 1988. This campaign was better organized and better financed. His campaign helped register more than 2 million new voters. In the Democratic Primary, Jesse Jackson beat Al Gore and Joe Biden who had dropped out of the race. Jesse Jackson came in second place to Democrat Michael Dukakis who lost to Republican George Bush Sr. While Al Gore and Joe Biden would in later years each become Vice President, neither could win against Jesse Jackson. The lessons of Jackson’s campaigns and the path he blazed helped create the opportunity 20 years later for Barack Obama to become elected in 2008. Culture Blurb thanks Jesse Jackson Jr. for his work to help advance the socioeconomic gains of the poor and African-Americans.