“If you want to honor my father, then do what he did,” Jonathan L. Jackson told the opening session of the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference in Chicago Feb. 23.
The son of Civil Rights leader Jesse Jackson brought the crowd to their feet in a standing ovation as he delivered a 15-minute speech that was part political rally and part revival meeting. The younger Jackson serves as U.S. representative for Illinois’ 1st Congressional District, which encompasses the venue of the meeting at McCormick Place.
“Jesse Jackson stood up for the marginalized and the rejected. Jesse Jackson stood up for the poor and the forgotten. He stood up for the farmers and the hungry stomachs of children who, in spite of being born in a wealthy country, went to bed without enough to eat,” he thundered. “Jesse Jackson stood up for the rights of women and the right to vote, and we honor him when we do what he’s done.
“I refuse to hand my children over to the ridiculous and malicious, mendacious darkness of this American nightmare.”
“And if you get tired, just remember the Bible was right,” he added. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning. America is in a terrible situation right now, but we’re going to win this battle. We’ve won every battle we’ve fought and never lost the battle. … And we’re not merely fighting for the soul of the country, but we’re fighting for the future of our children. That gets me excited, and I refuse to hand my children over to the ridiculous and malicious, mendacious darkness of this American nightmare that we’re seeing right now. I don’t care what comes out of the White House; evil will not consume my children.”
The opening session of the social justice and theology conference rooted in the Black Church tradition honored leaders who have paved the way for civil rights and social justice, including Jesse Jackson.
When his son took the stage, he explained the meeting hall in which they were assembled sits on Martin Luther King Drive, the first major street in the United States named for King after his assassination. That street runs through his congressional district, which has the longest-held consecutive Black representation in the U.S. House, he added.
The Chicago politician told the crowd of clergy and lay leaders: “My father told me not many years ago he’s not religious because he’s political. It’s his religion that made him political — that if you follow the gospel, it will challenge you.”
He paid tribute to Jeremiah Wright, the retired Chicago pastor who came into national scrutiny by conservatives during the presidency of Barack Obama. Wright is a co-founder of the Proctor Conference.
“I want to thank you for always celebrating my father for his contribution and work for over 50 years. There was not a single time that he walked amongst you that you did not honor him. And the fact that you did honor him says something about how truly honorable you are.”
Of Wright, he said: “Prophets are not honored in their hometown, but you dared to break that cycle, and I’m grateful for your remarkable and undying kindness. And on behalf of my entire family, I want to thank you for your love and support in this most difficult hour.”
Jesse Jackson died Feb. 17, less than a week earlier. His body has not yet been laid to rest.
The Proctor Conference is named for a well-known Civil Rights leader, pastor and educator who was a mentor to Martin Luther King. Proctor also was “responsible for making sure my father didn’t go to law school but rather went to seminary,” Jonathan Jackson explained. “Dr. Proctor told my father he can do more good for his people and for the service of God if he picked up the Bible and learned how to speak truth to power.”
Jackson said he “showed up today to encourage you to stay on the battlefield. Four hundred thousand Black women have lost their jobs since February 2025, and we need to stay on the battlefield. Children around the world have been consumed by starvation because of the policies of this administration. Ladies and gentlemen, we have to stay on the battlefield. Farmers are losing their farms in record numbers. Immigrants are being rounded up like animals. And many people who voted for this administration are starting to realize that evil has no friend and will consume anybody of its own delight. Stay on the battlefield.
“The message of Jesus has the power to change systems, change policies, change principalities.”
“The federal government and states around America are attempting to erase African American history. Because of that, we need you, each of you ministers, to stay on the battlefield. Isn’t it funny how the people who didn’t want us to learn how to read are now trying to make sure their own children don’t have access to a quality education? We have to stay on the battlefield.”
He quoted his father, who said racism is “a neurotic condition.”
“When the pain you unnecessarily inflicted upon other people becomes the pain you willingly inflict upon yourself, you are obviously suffering from something pathological and neurotic. We’re going to stay on the battlefield.”
This is a spiritual battle, he declared. “This gospel has the power to change the world. … The word is a gospel-changing word, not just soul changing, but the message of Jesus has the power to change systems, change policies, change principalities. For that is what we’re called to do.”
Preaching is good but not enough on its own, he said. “We are called to bring light to darkness, liberation to the oppressed and to tell Pharaoh to let my people go. … You have to protest injustice, fight against oppression, organize against the total policing policy, oppose materialism and reject racism with every ounce of your blood, soul and fiber because that’s what Jesus did. Whenever he saw suffering, he alleviated it. Whenever he saw bondage, he tried to liberate it. And whenever he saw corruption, he tried to confront it.
“Jesus was always on the side of the oppressed. And if you’re going to follow him, you have to stand where he stood.”
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