The Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda mourns the loss of one of the most influential civil rights warriors in modern history, Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr. From Operation Breadbasket to his historic presidential campaigns, to his decades of leadership at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Rev. Jackson dedicated his life to service, justice, and economic and political empowerment for Black communities across this nation.
Rev. Jackson began organizing as a student and soon became a trusted lieutenant of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. within the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. He utilized economic boycotts and negotiation to demand jobs, contracts, and opportunity for Black workers and businesses. But he didn’t just protest, he built political power.
His 1984 and 1988 presidential campaigns registered millions of new voters, including more than two million in 1988 alone. He expanded the electorate, inspired young people, and helped usher in a generation of Black elected officials at the state and national levels. His work strengthened the enforcement and spirit of the Voting Rights Act and cemented voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts as central pillars of the modern civil rights movement. He believed deeply that the ballot was the most powerful nonviolent tool we possess.
As we bid farewell to an American hero who dedicated his life to uplifting the marginalized and amplifying voices too often ignored, it feels as though we are closing the chapter on a generation of fearless warriors who confronted injustice and greed head-on. The man who inspired a nation to Keep Hope Alive has departed at a time when it feels hope is in short supply. Yet his life teaches us that hope is not passive; it is a call to action, a mandate to organize, and a responsibility to carry the struggle forward.
In this moment, when our right to vote faces renewed challenges and some seek to weaken the protections generations fought to secure, Rev. Jackson’s passing is not an ending, it is a charge. A call to reinvigorate, reinvent, resurrect, and replenish the civil rights movement. A call to organize, mobilize, and turn people out in record numbers in the 2026 election.
We honor his legacy not with words alone, but with action — by restoring and strengthening the Voting Rights Act, expanding access to the ballot, and ensuring that every citizen’s voice is heard and protected.
Rev. Jesse Jackson’s life was filled with purpose, and his message will endure. Now the mantle passes to us to carry it forward and to Keep Hope Alive.