Thought For The Day – Friday 27^th February 2026

I Am Somebody, You Are Somebody, We Are Somebodies

Picture credits above: Photograph one: Photoreporters/Shutterstock; photograph two, with Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Bob Fitch photography archive, Stanford University Libraries; photograph three, with Rosa Parks, Karen Engstrom/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images; photograph four, Getty images; photograph five, The Nelson Mandela Foundation.

Over the holidays, the Reverend Jesse Jackson passed away from this life. Reverend Jackson’s family paid the following tribute to a values-driven person:

“Our father was a servant leader – not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world. We shared him with the world, and in return, the world became part of our extended family. His unwavering belief in justice, equality, and love uplifted millions, and we ask you to honour his memory by continuing the fight for the values he lived by.”

Reverend Jackson, who grew up in humble surroundings, and was born to a teenage mother, in a then racist and segregated society, was present at Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Junior’s “I Have A Dream Speech” . He personally met, and worked with, Martin in Selma as equal voting rights were fearlessly campaigned for. He became the protégé of Reverend Dr. King . Jesse Jackson was with Reverend Dr. King Junior when Martin was assassinated.

Thereafter, Reverend Jackson would be an inspirational leader for civil rights in America and around the world. His “Rainbow P.U.S.H. coalition” included all. P.U.S.H. stood for “People United to Save and Serve Humanity”. Reverend Jackson advocated rights for Black and LGBTQ+ people, and economic justice. He became a global statesperson. Reverend Jackson was part of the “Black Lives Matter” campaign, even when he was suffering from Parkinson’s illness.

In 1984 and 1988 Reverend Jackson became the first black citizen to stand for the Presidency of the United States of America. In so doing, he paved the way for President Barack Obama, crying tears of joy at his election. Jesse ran so Barack could fly, it was said. On the moment of his passing, current, and former, Presidents of the United States of America paid tribute to Jesse Jackson.

As did children of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Junior, Bernice A. King and Martin Luther King III.

None of us are, and no human is, perfect in this life, but Reverend Jackson encouraged all to “Keep Hope Alive”. Reverend Al Sharpton, a current civil rights leader, said Reverend Jackson was a “consequential and transformative” leader who changed people, including himself, from “being bitter to being better”.

In his life, Reverend Jackson said it was his religion, his Christian faith, that made him political, not his politics that made him religious.

As Reverend Jesse Jackson passed from this life to The Greater Shore, a poem and speech from Reverend Jackson was widely shared. This empowered and inspired crowds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sn5hCdHuZzw It educated young people on the children’s educational, and entertaining, television programme, “Sesame Steet”, broadcast also in the United Kingdom: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/o-lf4NdOZ90. The poem and speech is called “I Am Somebody”:

I am Somebody!

I may be poor,

But I am Somebody.

I may be young,

But I am Somebody.

I may be on welfare,

But I am Somebody.

I may be small,

But I am Somebody.

I may have made mistakes,

But I am Somebody.

My clothes are different,