Hoyer Statement on the Passing of Rev. Jesse Jackson

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (MD-05) released the following statement today regarding the passing of civil rights leader Reverand Jesse Jackson:

"I join people across our region, country, and world in mourning Rev. Jesse Jackson. His is a terrible loss for America and for the cause of freedom, democracy, and justice everywhere. I'm praying for his entire family, including his sons Jonathan and Jesse Jr. whom I've served with in the Congress. 

"From the road to Selma to the balcony of Lorraine Motel, from leading Operation Breadbasket to advocating for D.C. Statehood, Rev. Jackson was always a voice for, in his words, 'the desperate, the damned, the disinherited, the disrespected, and the despised.' Crucially, he was a voice for the determined – for the people who refused to accept the status quo and who fought for what was right. He will forever be a member of that great pantheon of Civil Rights leaders along with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., my dear friend and brother John Lewis, Rosa Parks, and so many others.

"At a time when voting rights are under attack, when a middle-class life remains out of reach for so many, when some in our country wrongly view diversity and equity as our nation's weakness rather than as its strength, Rev. Jackson's memory will continue to guide us as we work to 'keep hope alive.'"