All posts tagged: Rev

Longtime civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson dies at 84 : NPR

Longtime civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson dies at 84 : NPR

Published by Sam Flores

The Rev. Jesse Jackson died Tuesday at the age of 84. Jason Mendez/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Jason Mendez/Getty Images The Rev. Jesse Jackson died Tuesday at the age of 84. Jason Mendez/Getty Images The Rev. Jesse Jackson, an American civil rights leader, minister, and politician, who was a protégé of Martin Luther King Jr. and in the 1980s reshaped Democratic politics with two galvanizing presidential campaigns, died Tuesday at the age of 84. “Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world,” the Jackson family said in a statement. “We shared him with the world, and in return, the world became part of our extended family.” According to the Jackson family, public commemorations will take place in Chicago. Jackson was born Oct. 8, 1941, in a tiny house in Greenville, S.C., where he began his lifelong work fighting for civil rights. While visiting home for Christmas break during his freshman year at the University of Illinois, Jackson needed …

The Rev. William Barber II: Fighting Autocrats Starts at the Grassroots

The Rev. William Barber II: Fighting Autocrats Starts at the Grassroots

Published by Sam Flores

“This Is Our Selma”—and a debate challenge to Speaker Mike Johnson. Turn out 1,500 more voters per county in North Carolina. That’s the threshold. The Reverend William Barber II has analyzed the numbers and believes that’s where districts flip. Gerrymandering typically assumes 45% turnout. At 50%, the map changes. Barber’s ‘s launching “This Is Our Selma” February 11-14 in Raleigh—a mobilization focused on organizing around voting rights, healthcare, and wage policy rather than resistance messaging. RELATED: Rev. William Barber takes up Mike Johnson’s challenge to debate immigration theology Barber, who led the 2013 Moral Monday protests, contends the strategy requires state-based county-level organizing rather than federal action alone. In every battleground state, voters earning low wages make up 36-42% of the electorate. Last cycle saw a notable shift: for the first time, voters earning under $50,000 favored Trump over Democrats by roughly 1%. The campaigns took different approaches. Trump visited rural Eastern North Carolina counties. Democrats focused on Charlotte and Greensboro. Barber says former candidate Pete Buttigieg confirmed that consultants discourage using the word “poor,” …

Rev. William Barber takes up Mike Johnson’s challenge to debate immigration theology

Rev. William Barber takes up Mike Johnson’s challenge to debate immigration theology

Published by Sam Flores

(RNS) — Longtime activist and anti-poverty advocate the Rev. William Barber is challenging House Speaker Mike Johnson to a theological debate over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, taking up the Republican congressman’s open-ended offer earlier this week to discuss the topic “with anybody at any time they want to.” Barber made the challenge during a Thursday (Feb. 5) interview for “Complexified,” a Religion News Service podcast created in partnership with Iliff Institute for Religion, Politics & Culture. The episode will be released Monday. “I want to have that debate with him,” Barber told “Complexified” host the Rev. Amanda Henderson. Barber’s challenge came after Johnson was asked during a press scrum on Wednesday to respond to criticism of Trump’s immigration policies levied by Pope Leo. Like his predecessor, Pope Francis, Leo has directly criticized Trump’s immigration policies on multiple occasions: In November, he cited Matthew 25:35 while expressing concern about the president’s approach to immigration, noting that Jesus “says very clearly, at the end of the world, we’re going to be asked, ‘how did you receive …