Former President Barack Obama took aim at Republican leadership in Washington in his speech at Rev. Jesse Jackson’s memorial service.
From former presidents to an NBA Hall of Famer to prominent church pastors, stories of the Jackson’s influence on politics, corporate boardrooms and picket lines loomed large Friday at the celebration honoring the late civil rights leader.
Thousands of people gathered at a church on Chicago’s South Side to pay a final public tribute to Jackson.
Obama said Jackson’s presidential runs in the 1980s set the stage for other Black leaders, including his own successful 2009 presidency and re-election.
“The message he sent to a 22-year-old child of a single mother with a funny name, an outsider, was that maybe there wasn’t any place or any room where we didn’t belong,” Obama said. “He paved the road for so many others to follow.”
Obama, joined by two other former Democratic presidents, Joe Biden and Bill Clinton, at a celebration of life for Jackson, received the loudest round of applause as the three entered the chamber.
“We are living in a time when it can be hard to hope,” Obama said.
“Each day we wake up to some new assault to our democratic institutions. Another setback to the idea of the rule of law, an offense to common decency. Every day you wake up to things you just didn’t think were possible.”
“Each day we are told by folks in high office to fear each other,” said Obama, referring to the current Republican leadership in Washington.
Biden, Clinton, and former Vice President Kamala Harris also spoke of their memories of Jackson and the legacy he leaves behind.
President Donald Trump, who praised Jackson on social media after he died and also shared photos of the two of them together, did not attend the service.
Jackson died last month at age 84 after battling a rare neurological disorder that affected his mobility and ability to speak.
Family members say he continued coming into the office until last year and communicated through hand signals. His final public appearances included the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Jackson’s pursuits were countless, taking him to all corners of the globe: Advocating for the poor and underrepresented on issues including voting rights, health care, job opportunities and education.
