The funeral service honoring Rev. Jesse Jackson began at 11 a.m. at Chicago’s House of Hope in Chicago’s Pullman neighborhood. Scores of people from around the world took their seats at the homegoing to honor the civil rights icon.
More audience reaction photos from the day’s rousing speeches
The audience reacts during one of the speeches at Rev. Jesse Jackson’s celebration of life at House of Hope.
Some in the crowd are not ready to leave just yet
Sonya Blackman (left) and her daughter (right), were among those who lingered in the lobby of House of Hope after services for Rev. Jackson ended.
Sonya Blackman and her daughter were among those who lingered in the lobby of House of Hope after services for Rev. Jackson ended.
Blackman, of Calumet Heights, who attends House of Hope said the service was long, but she thought it was nice to hear from so many dignitaries about Rev. Jackson’s work across many issues.
She was particularly moved by remarks from Jesse Jackson Jr., which she interpreted as highlighting the importance of keeping faith alive.
“When we feel we are at our lowest moment [as] the stranger,” Blackman said, referencing the scripture mentioned in the speech. “You never know where your help is going to come from.”
She said the message was important to hear in particular because of the difficult times the country is facing, a theme many speakers touched on Friday.
Blackman and her daughter planned to attend Saturday’s service and looked forward to hearing from relatives who weren’t able to speak as the program stretched past five hours.
The homegoing draws to a close
Rev. Jesse Jackson’s casket is rolled out at the end of his celebration of life service at House of Hope.
The Jackson family is following the casket out as the program closes.
At the start, Rev. James Meeks said “this isn’t a homegoing, it’s a celebration.”
His words proved true as the crowd’s energy throughout was not one of sorrow. It was a church service and a tribute filled with song, spirit and sermons.
It was announced that Jesse Jackson Jr., Jonathan Jackson, Jacqueline Jackson will speak at tomorrow’s services, which begin at 10 a.m.
Rev. Jamal Bryant gives a cutting critique of the administration
As the event stretches past 4 p.m., the crowd awoke as the Rev. Jamal Bryant of New Missionary Baptist Church said they couldn’t go to the Capitol to celebrate Rev. Jackson because it appears it is only reserved for “pedophiles and podcasters.”
Maxine Waters was auntie for Jesse Jackson’s children
Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., honors the Rev. Jesse Jackson at House of Hope in Chicago’s Pullman neighborhood Friday.
Call her “auntie.” Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., is a personal friend of the Jackson family. In 1984 she joined Jackson’s first presidential campaign.
To the Jackson kids, she was considered the auntie who watched them grow up. But when it came to the congressional careers of ex-Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., and his brother, Rep. Jonathan Jackson — both Illinois Democrats — she was family and more.
Jonathan, at his DC campaign kickoff talked about Waters, who had been expected but did not make the event. And when Jesse Jr. landed in Washington, she got him on her House Financial Services Committee, a plum spot. She is the top Democrat on the panel.
Jesse Jackson Jr. on his father’s true legacy
Former Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. honoring his father, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, at House of Hope in Chicago’s Pullman neighborhood Friday.
Standing before a backdrop that stated, “Keep Hope Alive,” former Congressman Jesse Jackson Jr. said his father’s greatest legacy is changing the psychology of how Black people saw themselves. He added that people were better off than when they met him.
The president of Colombia extols human diversity
Colombian President Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego spoke in Spanish, the only foreign leader to speak so far during Friday’s ceremony.
He weaved together the stories of African Americans in the United States and Afro-Latinos in Colombia.
“There cannot be freedom without human diversity,” he said.
He was the first speaker to have his microphone cut off as the program ran late.
Petro has had a tense relationship with President Donald Trump’s administration, and Trump previously threatened military action in the South American country. But the two met last month and tensions appeared to quell.
Le’Andria Johnson performs ‘We Shall Overcome’
“We Shall Overcome,” is now being performed by Le’Andria Johnson, her own take on the anthem for the then-growing Civil Rights Movement that Jackson was a part of. It speaks to us today.
Some background: “We Shall Overcome” became popular in the 1950s through the banjo-playing folk singer Pete Seeger. Indeed, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. heard Seeger playing it on Sept. 2, 1957.
Kamala Harris takes a dig at President Trump in her speech
Former Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris at the House of Hope service for Rev. Jesse Jackson.
Former Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris immediately addressed President Trump in her speech: “I predicted a lot of what’s what’s happening right now. I’m not into saying ‘I told you so,’ but we did see it coming,” Harris said.
“But what I did not predict is that we would not have Jesse Jackson with us to get through this.”
