The late Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr.’s son took a swipe at three former U.S. presidents after Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Joe Biden paid tribute at his father’s memorial service.
Jesse Jackson Jr. argued that the former leaders did not truly know his father, when he gave his eulogy at the Rainbow PUSH Coalition headquarters in Chicago Saturday.
“Yesterday, I listened for several hours of three United States presidents who do not know Jesse Jackson,” Jackson Jr. said.
“He maintained a tense relationship with the political order, not because the presidents were White or Black, but the demands of our message, the demands of speaking for the least of these – those who are disinherited, the damned, the dispossessed, the disrespected – demanded not Democratic or Republican solutions, but demanded a consistent, prophetic voice that at no point in time sold us out as a people.”
The Jackson family had asked attendees “not to bring their politics” to the service, in a statement last month.
However during Friday’s memorial, Obama made what appeared to be a thinly veiled jab at the incumbent Trump administration. Trump did not attend the event.
“Each day, we’re told by those in high office to fear each other and to turn on each other, and that some Americans count more than others, and that some don’t even count at all,” said Obama, whose wife Michelle was notably absent from the event.
“Everywhere we see greed and bigotry being celebrated, and bullying and mockery masquerading as strength.”
During his speech, Biden admitted that he disagreed on some issues with Jackson Sr, though praised his dedication.
“Sometimes we went toe-to-toe, we disagreed on some issues,” he said. “But that’s what I actually admired most about Jesse. His passion, he was passionate, his passion.”
Jackson Sr. died on February 17, and founded the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, a non-profit social justice organization. His son, Jackson Jr., served as a Democratic representative for Illinois from 1995 until 2012.
Clinton told listeners he was attending the funeral “more as a friend than a former president,” adding that Jackson Sr was a “friend when I needed him.”
Former Vice President Harris also delivered a speech, in which she also appeared to take a shot at Trump without mentioning him by name.
“Let me just say I predicted a lot about what’s happening right now,” she said. “I’m not into saying I told you so, but we did see it coming.
“But what I did not predict is that we would not have Jesse Jackson with us right now to help us get through this.”
