The Reverend Jesse Jackson Sr., a cornerstone of the American Civil Rights Movement and a two-time presidential candidate, died Feb. 17, 2026, at his home in Chicago. He was 84.
Jackson, a Baptist minister, died surrounded by his family following years of health challenges, including Parkinson’s disease.
Born in Greenville, South Carolina, in 1941, Jackson rose from the segregated South to national prominence as a protégé of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. He marched alongside King during pivotal battles for voting rights and civil liberties in the 1960s, founding his activism on direct confrontation with Jim Crow laws and economic oppression.
Jackson is most frequently recognized for his leadership in Black civil rights and his historic bids for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988. However, his "Rainbow Coalition" philosophy championed solidarity among all marginalized groups, including Native Americans, Latinos and the poor.
Rev. Jesse Jackson at Standing Rock in October 2016. (Photo/File)
Though not a central figure in Native American-led movements, Jackson frequently used his platform to support Indigenous causes:
1997: He supported the Colorado River Native Nations Alliance in its efforts to protect a sacred site from nuclear waste dumping.
2000: He advocated for the release of activist Leonard Peltier during the final months of the Clinton administration.
2016: Jackson traveled to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation during the #NoDAPL protests, stating the tribe's cause was "precious" to him.
In March 2020, while campaigning for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Jackson spoke at Calder Plaza in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During the speech, he highlighted the shared struggles of marginalized communities.
"With the exception of Native Americans, African Americans are the people who are most behind socially and economically in the United States and our needs are not moderate," Jackson said.
On Tueday, Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin, Jr. said Reverend Jackson was a fierce warrior for racial, social, and economic justice and a friend to the Cherokee people.
"During his career he spoke out on many of the causes and concerns of Indian Country, often equating the treatment of Native Americans and the enslavement of Black people as two of America's original sins to which we should all commit ourselves to reconcile and from which we must all heal," Hoskin said in a statement.
Jackson is survived by his wife, Jacqueline, and their children.
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Levi "Calm Before the Storm" Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert was awarded Best Column 2021 Native Media Award for the print/online category by the Native American Journalists Association. He serves on the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents Association. He can be reached at [email protected].
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