"Breaking: Jesse Jackson, Civil Rights Giant, Dies at 84"

By: Wayne Forbes /GTV Editor

February 17, 2026

Civil Rights Giant Rev. Jesse Jackson Dies at 84

Civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson passed away peacefully at his Chicago home on the morning of February 17, 2026, surrounded by family, according to a statement from the Rainbow Push Coalition he founded. He was 84 years old. Jackson had been treated for progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) since November 2025, after initially being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2017.

Born Jesse Louis Burns on October 8, 1941, in Greenville, South Carolina, Jackson grew up amid segregation and poverty. He rose to prominence as a close associate of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., standing beside him on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis when King was assassinated in 1968. Before that, he led desegregation protests as a student and later headed Operation Breadbasket in Chicago, which pushed corporations to adopt affirmative action and support Black-owned businesses.

In 1971, he founded Operation PUSH (People United to Serve Humanity), and later the Rainbow Coalition, merging them into the Rainbow Push Coalition to advocate for racial, economic, and social justice. His two historic presidential runs in 1984 and 1988—making him the second African American to mount a nationwide campaign and the most successful Black candidate at the time—paved the way for future leaders like Barack Obama, who cited Jackson as an inspiration. He also worked to expand voter registration and pushed the Democratic Party to reform delegate selection rules to be more proportional.

Beyond U.S. borders, Jackson acted as an international diplomat, securing the release of Americans held captive in Syria, Cuba, Iraq, and Kosovo. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton in 2000 and France's Legion of Honor in 2021 for his global advocacy work.

"Our father was a servant leader—not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world," the Jackson family said in a statement. "His unwavering belief in justice, equality, and love uplifted millions, and we ask you to honor his memory by continuing the fight for the values he lived