Dana Kozlov is an Emmy Award-winning political investigative reporter for CBS2 Chicago. Prior to joining the station in 2003, she worked at WGN, CNN Chicago and WEEK-TV in Peoria, where she began her journalism career in 1992.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson remembered the Rev. Jesse Jackson Wednesday as an indefatigable organizer and fighter for justice and a mentor to him personally.
Jackson passed away on Tuesday at the age of 84. Mayor Johnson said he would not be leading the City of Chicago if Rev. Jackson had not paved the way.
"When I first came into contact with Reverend Jackson, the way he just embraced my humanity, he embraced what he saw in me -- which was an incredible amount of potential, and, you know his life will forever be marked in my family's life as a clear marker of when my life began to shift and change politically, as a father as a husband, and of course, as a human being," Mayor Johnson said on CBS News Chicago Wednesday morning.
Mayor Johnson pointed to a visit with Jackson to Selma, Alabama, to commemorate Bloody Sunday -- the infamous day in 1965 in which some 600 marchers set off from Selma headed for the state capital of Montgomery in response to a shooting that killed a civil rights activist.
The marchers only made it to the Edmund Pettus Bridge, where they were attacked by police. Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and future U.S. Rep. John Lewis suffered a skull fracture.
Bloody Sunday was what prompted Jackson to go to Selma himself, along with a group of fellow students from the Chicago Theological Seminary, to assist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in fighting for voting rights. Jackson went on to lead the second and third marches across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, his son Yusef noted.
Johnson said Jackson that while the Selma marches are remembered as heroic acts today, organizing people for such a cause was not easy then and still isn't.
"What he said to me was that, you know, when the when the victory is won, there will be many who will claim to have been on that bridge," Johnson said. "But he said that in reality, it's difficult to organize people toward justice. But he said, just stick to it, because even if it's just a few of us, to get to that bridge and therefore cross it."
Johnson was asked if there was someone else waiting in the wings as Jackson's successor as an activist and Civil Rights leader. The mayor said he would not attempt to identify someone "who could replicate such a remarkable human being."
"But I think where I draw strength is that because he has left such an indelible mark on so many different people there are multiple Reverend Jacksons, and they exist in multiple lanes."
Johnson emphasized that Rev. Jackson "transformed the way corporate CEOs saw equity," and also understood the connection between labor and faith and the value of community-based organizations.
"So I believe that when I look at all the different disciplines and industries where he has had impact, Reverend Jackson's insight and his instincts and his love spread throughout all of our disciplines and our industries," Johnson said.
Johnson added that Jackson's method of organizing and call to "keep hope alive" continues to inspire today's progressive movement.
"You know, Reverend Jackson, in many regards, is the embodiment of today's progressive movement," the mayor said. "You know, he talked about a single-payer health care system. He talked about public education. He understood the values of working people. And so the progressive movement as we know it, whether it's a [Zohran] Mamdani in New York or Karen Bass in Los Angeles, it's Reverend Jackson's platform that we are still working towards achieving."
The mayor also gave Rev. Jackson credit for his personal advice.
"I'm not mayor without him. One fond memory of reverend -- when I was organizing on behalf of families in this city, fighting for good public schools, he said, 'You know, son, if you got a haircut and put on a suit, you just might become good politician one day,'" said Johnson. "So in honor of Reverend Jackson, I got my haircut; put on a pretty decent suit. I'm not mayor without him."
As to whether he plans to run for another term as mayor in 2027, Johnson said, "We'll get to that when time is right."