Jesse Jackson Junior, son of the late Reverend Jesse Jackson Senior, said on Saturday morning “I have to bury my father today. I have been trying to be strong for my family. But now I have to say goodbye to my dad. Love you Dad thank you for everything.”
Jackson died on Tuesday, at the age of 84.
Three former United States Presidents attended the funeral- Bill Clinton, Barrack Obama and Joe Biden, were part of hundreds at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters to bid farewell to Jackson Senior.
Jackson, founded the Rainbow PUSH Coalition in the ’60s.
Speaking at the funeral, President Cyril Ramaphosa, said “ we honour him by carrying forward the values he lived for: justice, dignity, equality, by committing to a lifetime of service to others, by showing up when others look away from injustice, when they fear to stand up to power and when they walk away from suffering, by pledging solidarity and using every opportunity to support the just struggle of others, by ensuring that there is justice for all and by keeping hope alive, as Jesse Jackson taught us.”
Jackson stood alongside Nelson Mandela, in 1990, as he walked free, in Cape Town.
Pictures: Push Coalition