JESSE JACKSON AND THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY :
A RICH LEGACY AND A DEBT STILL UNPAID
By SYLVESTER MONROE
When the Reverend Jesse L . Jackson was wheeled onto the stage to a rousing standing ovation on the first night of the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago , it was an emotional and well-deserved tribute to a longtime party stalwart .
( photo Getty Images )
Democratic presidential candidates Walter Mondale ( L ) and Jesse Jackson ( 2nd , L ) participate in the Democratic debate at Columbia University on March 28 , 1984 in New York , while Gary Hart ( R ) answers a question from journalist Dan Rather .
That brief , shining moment was also a bittersweet reminder of the huge debt of gratitude the Democratic Party and the nation owe the once strapping , 6 feet 3 inches tall preacher-politician for his historic role in reshaping the face of the Democratic Party and paving the way for the election of Barack Obama as the first Black president of the United States .
Now forced to travel in a wheelchair , with his once powerful voice diminished to a barely audible mumble by Parkinson ’ s disease , the 82-yearold Jackson showed that his body may be bowed , but his spirit is not broken as he flashed that famous Jackson grin and lifted his trademark , curved-back thumbs up to the crowd . With that gesture , he was still trying to “ keep hope alive ,” which was the motto from his ground-breaking 1984 presidential campaign .
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