Civil rights icon Rev. Jesse Jackson, at the advanced age of 84, has been rushed to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago with a health crisis that’s got everyone on edge.
The Daily Mail reported that Jackson is under observation for Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), a tough neurodegenerative condition he’s been battling for over a decade.
Jackson’s story starts way back in Greenville, South Carolina, where he kicked off his fight for equality by challenging segregation at the local library in the 1960s.
His early activism, including leading sit-ins, wasn’t about handouts but about demanding a seat at the table. It’s a reminder that real change comes from action, not endless virtue signaling.
By 1965, Jackson was a full-time organizer for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and soon after, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. tapped him to lead Operation Breadbasket, a program pushing for better jobs and economic fairness for African Americans.
Boycotts and hard-nosed negotiations were his tools, not hashtags or cancel culture. That’s a playbook some modern activists might want to dust off.
Ordained in 1967, Jackson didn’t just preach from the pulpit—he founded Operation PUSH in 1971 to drive economic empowerment and educational access, later merging it with the National Rainbow Coalition in 1996 to broaden the fight for social justice.
The Rainbow PUSH Coalition has called him a unifier, saying, “He is known for bringing people together on common ground across lines of race, culture, class, gender and belief."
Well, that’s a noble sentiment, but let’s be real—bridging divides today often feels like a pipe dream when every disagreement gets spun into a culture war. Jackson’s track record shows effort, though, and that’s worth a nod.
Jackson didn’t stop at grassroots work—he ran for president in 1984 and 1988, shaking up the political scene with millions of votes and inspiring droves of new voters.
In ’84, he pulled 3.5 million votes, helping Democrats reclaim the Senate in 1986, and in ’88, he racked up seven million. Agree or not with his platform, that’s the kind of influence that forces even skeptics to pay attention.
In 1991, he was elected senator of Washington, D.C., pushing for statehood and a so-called ‘rainbow’ agenda, which sounds inclusive but often leaned hard into policies some conservatives see as overreaching. Still, his hustle can’t be denied.
By 1997, former President Bill Clinton named him a Special Envoy for democracy promotion in Africa, where he met with heavyweights like Nelson Mandela and Daniel Arap Moi. That’s global impact, though one wonders if such roles always prioritize American interests or get mired in international feel-good optics.
Back to the present, Jackson’s health fight with PSP, initially misdiagnosed as Parkinson’s until updated in April 2025, is a stark reminder of human fragility.
According to CurePSP, there’s no cure for this brain condition, often confused with Parkinson’s, leaving research as the only hope. It’s a tough pill to swallow for a man who’s spent over 60 years in the trenches for racial and economic justice.
The Rainbow PUSH Coalition confirmed, “The reverend is currently under observation for Progressive Supranuclear Palsy."
While they’re keeping details tight, it’s clear this isn’t a minor setback for a man dubbed the ‘Conscience of the Nation.’ Let’s hope the medical team can at least ease his burden, even if a full fix isn’t on the table.
Jackson’s accolades are endless—over 40 honorary doctorates, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2000 from Clinton, and a lifelong push for voter registration and informed civic duty.
His advocacy for universal healthcare and more funding for civil rights enforcement might rub fiscal conservatives the wrong way, but his call for investment in underserved communities hits a chord with anyone tired of government neglect.