Jackson's legacy is not one of triumph or failure, but of persistent contradiction – a reminder that courage without structural rupture risks absorption into the very hegemony it seeks to overthrow.

As a student in North Carolina A&T, Jackson gradually became involved with the civil rights movement. In 1960, he was arrested with seven other students after a silent demonstration in a whites-only public library, which led to the desegregation of the library.

Jesse Jackson was never just a politician. He was a presence.

The new Hulu documentary explores how Martin Luther King Jr. and Barack Obama used basketball to connect with people. Photo courtesy of @alexysthegreat on Instagram In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the short documentary “Hoops, Hopes & Dreams ...

OBITUARY: The Reverend Jesse Jackson, a towering figure in the American civil rights movement, has passed away at the age of 84. Ariana Baio looks back on his inspirational life

Mixing praise with petty digs, Trump claimed during his days as a New York real estate tycoon he was friends with Jackson, whom he said “couldn’t stand” Barack Obama.

Ebony magazine, in a special January 2009 collector's edition, presented a special feature page of Martin Luther King as "Then" and Barack Obama as "Now." In his "I Have a Dream Speech" in Washington, D.C. on August, 1963, Martin Luther King made reference to the Emancipation Proclamation which was signed Jan. 1, 1863 giving hope to Negro slaves.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, America’s most influential Black figure in the years between the civil rights crusades of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the election of Barack Obama, died on Tuesday. He was 84. In a statement, his family said that Mr. Jackson “died peacefully,” but did not give a cause.