Jesse Jackson — A Remembrance

I was one of the “boys on the bus“ in ‘84 covering The Rev. Jesse Jackson for The Washington Times. (FYI: I was the only Black reporter on the national staff.) 

I remember traveling through the South and Midwest, including Memphis, when he was barnstorming, meeting with Black pastors at their national conventions to discuss his platform and raise critically needed funding. Jesse had leased a propeller-driven aircraft  from a white televangelist; I want to remember it was someone out of Louisiana. Anyway, the plane had constant problems — and so we were always operating on CPT. I had to tell my editors that even though I had stories scheduled, Jesse was never on time for my deadlines. I spent a week in Missouri going from Kansas City through Columbia and then to St. Louis with Jesse.

And when that “ Hymietown“ whisper got picked up by Milton Coleman at The Washington Post, and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan subsequently said that Coleman and other Black journalists,are “pure chump operatives” of white editors and should be harmed, I immediately wrote an opinion piece, defending us Black journalists. 

The takeaway: We had to tightrope between our skeptical newsroom managers and a skeptical, sometimes hostile Black populace. But we were journalists who happened to be Black — and Blacks who happened to be journalists.

When Jesse went to Syria to try to win back a downed American Navy pilot, I implored  my editors to send me because all other Reagan administration efforts had failed. No way would Jesse succeed, was the response, with them dismissively surmising it a failed adventure that smacked of a Jackson publicity stunt. 

They were dead wrong, of course. So, I was at Andrews Air Force Base when Jesse bought Navy Lt. Robert Goodman back for a triumphant homecoming in July, 1984. Later that day, a rally was held in a packed church in downtown Washington. (I want to say it was Metropolitan AME). Jesse introduced Goodman, a Black aviator, and everyone inside felt the love and the power of Jesse Jackson.

So, thanks, Jesse, for giving me the opportunity to spread my journalist wings. And my gratitude for giving voice, strength and support to untold millions of the underserved across our planet.