The Rev. Jesse Jackson called a press conference at Operation PUSH headquarters, 930 E. 50th St., Thursday, after getting word that world-famous pop music icon, Michael Jackson, had died earlier that day.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson called a press conference at Operation PUSH headquarters, 930 E. 50th St., Thursday, after getting word that world-famous pop music icon, Michael Jackson, had died earlier that day. The Rev. Jackson wept, turning away from the modest crowd that gathered. “We don’t understand the why now, why this moment. We can’t even explain the suddenness of this,” the Rev. Jackson said, leading a prayer. “Part of our pain is the suddenness,” he said. Michael Jackson was rushed from his home in suburban Los Angeles to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center hospital in full cardiac arrest, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office told the Defender. He was pronounced dead a little over an hour after arriving to the hospital, when doctors failed to resuscitate him. At the press conference, the head of the Rainbow/PUSH coalition recalled his time with Michael Jackson last year when the King of Pop and Motown legend performed at the reverend’s 66th birthday celebration. “We lost our joy. He’s lost his pain,” the Rev. Jackson said. The Rev. Jackson said he was called on by the Jackson family to be with them in their mourning. Michael Jackson had been gearing up—physically and musically—for the overwhelmingly anticipated series of performances starting July 7 at the O2 Arena in London. The 10 shows he was scheduled to do were already sold out. The Rev. Jackson explained how he came to meet Michael Jackson and his brothers, who, together, were the Jackson 5. PUSH was having an expo in the ‘70s and the Jackson 5 was in town performing at the Regal Theater, he said. The then-emerging sensation group crashed the expo, arriving “in a station wagon with a U-Haul attached to it” and asking to perform on the already-packed program, the Rev. Jackson said. At an aide’s insistence, the Rev. Jackson let the boys perform and they wowed the crowd.
The Jackson 5 went on to become a successful R&B group and when Michael Jackson eventually went solo, he became the top-selling artist in the world.
The July 7 concert was to mark yet another comeback for the music phenom who had been dogged over the years by changes to his physical appearance and legal and financial issues. “He was ready and the world was ready to receive him,” the Rev. Jackson said. “But it was not to be. “Now he rests.” ______ Copyright 2009 Chicago Defender. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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