Has Jesse Jackson become irrelevant?

OPINION - Is Jesse Jackson still relevant? And can he remain relevant in the age of Obama?...

Luther Vandross was outed as gay after his death.

Just as an older generation had to step aside for him, Jesse Jackson has had to contend with a younger generation of black leaders, and that is not a bad thing.  For example, there is a new energy coming out of the NAACP with Ben Jealous at the wheel, on issues ranging from the death penalty and voter ID to Trayvon Martin and stop and frisk.  This represents the awakening of a once-rusty dusty ol’ civil rights establishment that sat on its laurels for years, congratulated itself for the hard-fought victories of the 1950s and 1960s, and was far too content with holding chicken dinners, mistaking them for action and calling it a day.

And yet, we should resist the temptation to rely on anyone, whether Rev. Jackson, Rev. Sharpton, or even President Obama, as the singular titular head of black America.  One person cannot do it alone, and putting one’s faith in messianic figures does not necessarily serve our best interests.  As the martyrdom of Dr. King, Malcolm X and others has demonstrated, depending on one leader can lead to catastrophe if that leader departs from the scene and creates a vacuum with no contingency plan.

Is there a role for Rev. Jackson?  Indeed there is, though perhaps not as in the past.  Circumstances change, people change, and we must adapt.  As a village elder, Jackson has political acumen, wisdom from which the community can learn, and experience that a new generation of leaders can and should emulate.  No one has done it the way Jesse has, with his successful negotiating skills leading to the release of American hostages in international conflicts.

Moreover, given Jackson’s work with Dr. King and the civil rights movement, his experience with voting rights activism, coalition building, economic empowerment, selective boycotts and desegregation resonates today.  The tactics he employed are relevant in the retro years of the twenty-first century, where the old civil rights battles meet new challenges, with a twist.

Once again, black Americans find themselves with their backs against the wall, along with 99 percent of Americans of all colors.  But they are not used to adversity and fighting to overcome it in the way that civil rights workers literally fought for their lives.  Nevertheless, they are learning a lesson in the need to develop strategies to fight back.  We can blame the old folks for not teaching the younger generation the lessons of the civil rights movement, replacing them instead with an ethos of getting rich and looking out for number one.  A new crop of Americans, including African -Americans, is not used to rough times — but they are waking up quickly.

With the erosion of voting rights, labor rights and women’s rights, a cradle-to-prison pipeline, chronic unemployment and increased economic inequality, Jesse Jackson has a role to play.  Not as the only leader or the top black leader, but one of a host of leaders who work together to solve problems, rather than undercut each other and compromise the community for personal gain and media attention.  And really, no one should be the sole leader.

We should cultivate leadership on every block and very corner and develop innovative strategies, yet avoid reinventing the wheel by emulating the successes of people such as Rev. Jackson.

Follow David A. Love on Twitter at @davidalove

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