Jesse Jackson

"My clothes are different, my face is different, my hair is different, but I am somebody. I am black, brown, white. I speak a different language. But I must be respected, protected, never rejected. I am God’s child. ⁣I am somebody.” —Jesse Jackson

Few figures loom as large as Reverend Jesse Jackson in the history of American civil rights. From marching in the 1960s with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., to forming the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, to his historic presidential campaigns, Jesse Jackson spent his life at the forefront of the civil rights movement. Recipient of numerous awards including the Presidential Medal of Freedom and NAACP Spingarn Medal, Jackson is undoubtedly one of the most consequential figures in the nation's history.

Collected here are rare and previously uncollected interviews with magazines, newspapers, and television broadcasts. In them, Jackson talks of his work with Dr. King, and the tragic night when he was killed. He addresses the economic deregulation of the 1970s, how it translated to tax cuts for the wealthy but few benefits for the poor and underrepresented. He tells of his own presidential campaigns and, with the political rise of Barack Obama, anticipates the election of the country's first Black president. From these brief glimpses emerges a picture of a man of moral purpose, who taught us that the only justification to look down on someone is to stop and pick them up.

Jesse Jackson was an American civil rights activist, politician, and Baptist minister. As a close friend of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Jackson was instrumental in the civil rights movement of the 1960s and 70s, changed the way presidentical candidates were chosen with his historic presidentail campaigns, and founded the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.

Al Sharpton is a minister, activist, and one of the nation's most distinguished leaders in the fight against injustice. He has advocated for civil rights for over fifty years, since he was appointed by Jesse Jackson as youth director of Operation Breadbasket at the age of thirteen. Reverend Sharpton is the founder and President of the National Action Network, and hosts PoliticsNation on MS NOW as well as Keepin’ It Real, a nationally syndicated radio show.

• Publisher: Melville House
  
• Publish Date: October 06, 2026
  
• Pages: 192
  
• Language: English
  
• Type: Paperback
• EAN/UPC: 9781685893057
  
• Dimensions: 8.3 X 5.5 X 0.5 inches | 0.5 pounds
  
• BISAC Categories: Biography & Memoir, Politics, History