Civic leaders around Benton Harbor are remembering the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who died Tuesday at the age of 84.
Speaking Tuesday night, Mayor Marcus Muhammad said Jackson was a “great giant” with a long history of involvement in Benton Harbor. He remembered Jackson fighting for the rights of Benton Harbor residents and against the state takeover of the city around 2011. Muhammad was the mayor pro tem back then and Jackson gave him some advice.
“He said, you focus too much on the emergency manager. He said, I don’t even wanna hear his name again. He said, because he’s just a mailman, and he’s bringing the mail from Lansing. So we need to not be distracted on the EM. So we need to not be distracted on the EM. We need to be focused on what’s coming out of Lansing,” Muhammad said.
Muhammad said that’s how he learned to go directly to Lansing when seeking progress on state matters. Also speaking Tuesday, Berrien County Commissioner Mamie Yarbrough said Jackson was an inspiration.
“Jesse Jackson ran for president of the United States of America two times, and yes, I voted for him. And I thought, we ain’t gonna never have a Black president. And we did. Ain’t God something? We had a Black president that lived in Chicago, Illinois, where Jesse Jackson lived,” Yarbrough said.
Yarbrough remembered many Jackson visits to the community during which he would hold events at churches. She called it a wonderful time.
