SPRINGFIELD – Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford (D-Maywood) released the following statement after the death of Reverend Jesse Jackson:

“Today, Illinois and the world mourn the loss of one of the greatest champions for justice and human dignity this nation has ever produced. The Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson Sr. was a moral force, a prophetic voice and a living bridge between the movement that freed us and the work that still remains.

“I had the privilege of working alongside Reverend Jackson. I remember the way he looked you in the eye and made you feel as though the entire weight of the struggle was yours to carry — not as a burden, but as an honor. That encounter never left me. It shaped the kind of public servant I strive to be.

“To the entire Jackson family: the people of Illinois grieve with you. You shared him with the world, and the world is better for it.

“May we honor his memory not with monuments, but with motion — continuing the fight for voting rights, economic justice and the full dignity of every human being. Rest in power, Reverend. The work goes on.”