Rev. Jesse Jackson, Jr. is stepping down as president of the pioneering civil rights organization Rainbow PUSH, which he founded more than 50 years ago.
A successor has yet to be named. This announcement comes as the 57th annual Rainbow PUSH Coalition Convention is set to occur this weekend. A spokesperson said his successor would be named at this weekend’s convention.
News of Rev. Jackson’s departure from the organization he founded in 1971 drew national reaction, most notably from Rev. Al Sharpton.
“The resignation of Rev. Jesse Jackson is the pivoting of one of the most productive, prophetic, and dominant figures in the struggle for social justice in American history,” Rev. Sharpton said, in part, in a statement.
We will continue to update this story as details become available.