Reverend Jesse Jackson Dead at 84

Reverend Jesse Jackson, the civil rights icon who twice ran for U.S. president, has died, according to his family.

Jesse’s family issued a statement Tuesday morning, saying … “Our father was a servant leader — not only to our family, but to the oppressed, the voiceless, and the overlooked around the world.”

They went on … “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 honor his memory by continuing the fight for the values he lived by.”

Jackson died peacefully with his loved ones at his side. In November, Jesse was hospitalized after living for over a decade with progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), according to his Rainbow PUSH Coalition. The disease impacts patients’ ability to walk and swallow and has dangerous complications.

Jackson’s official cause of death was not released.

He was 84.