Memorial services for Jesse Jackson begin at Chicago headquarters of his civil rights organization
Source: NBC News/AP
Feb. 26, 2026, 3:39 AM EST / Updated Feb. 26, 2026, 11:51 AM EST / Source: The Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) Crowds of mourners lined up in Chicago as cross-country memorial services for the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. began Thursday in the city the late civil rights leader called home.
The protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and two-time presidential candidate will lie in repose for two days at the headquarters of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition before events in Washington, D.C., and South Carolina, where he was born.
Family members wiped away tears as the casket was brought into the stately brick building. Flowers lined the sidewalks where people waiting to enter watched a large video screen playing excerpts of Jacksons notable speeches. The outpouring of love and support received from around the globe has been abundant and deeply felt, Jacksons family members said in a recent statement.
Jackson died last week at age 84 after battling a rare neurological disorder that affected his mobility and ability to speak in his later years.
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