Template:POTD/2011-10-08
Jesse Jackson (seen here in 1983) is an African American civil rights activist and Baptist minister. Jackson came to prominence with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, working closely with Martin Luther King Jr., but he clashed with King's successor Ralph Abernathy and left the organization to form Operation PUSH. Jackson was unsuccessful in both his 1984 and 1988 attempts to win the Democratic presidential nomination. Since then, he has remained active in the African American community and is seen by many as one of America's most important black leaders.Photo: Warren K. Leffler, USN≀ Restoration: Fletcher