Dr. King's Dream vs. Jesse's Nightmare

Dr. King's Dream vs. Jesse's Nightmare By Reverend Jesse Lee Peterson FrontPageMagazine.com January 17, 2005

As we celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King's birthday, let us pause for a moment to reflect on his self-proclaimed successor, one Jesse Louis Jackson, and the implications of his slow fall from grace.

For the first time in eight years, Jesse Jackson's Wall Street Project did not receive a donation from the New York Stock Exchange. And for the second year in a row, the Project did not hold its fundraising event on the floor of the stock exchange. Jackson had used the NYSE floor for six consecutive years before being frozen out last year. What happened?

To understand the fall of Jesse Jackson, one needs to know a little history…

Over the past fifteen years, I have worked tirelessly to expose Jesse Jackson for the thoroughly wicked man that he is. And for the past five years, my organization (BOND) has held our National Day of Repudiation of Jesse Jackson on Dr. King's birthday, to contrast Dr. King's dream with "Rev." Jackson's nightmare.

Along the way, Jackson has continually eroded his own credibility. For instance, after inserting himself into the post-2000 presidential election controversy ("stay outta da Bushes!"), it was soon revealed that Jackson had had an affair with a young staffer named Karin Stanford, which produced a child.

Jackson then had the hubris to bring the pregnant Stanford with him to the White House when he counseled then President Bill Clinton about his affair with Monica Lewinsky! (Actually, I believe Jackson and Clinton gave each other the high five!)

In December of 2001, I was attacked by Jesse Jackson, his son Jonathan Jackson, Judge Greg Mathis, and others at a Rainbow/PUSH meeting with representatives of Toyota in Los Angeles. I've told my story in the media, and have since filed suit against Jackson and Rainbow/PUSH for assault, battery, civil rights violations, and other charges.

In February of 2002, Kenneth Timmerman's excellent and comprehensive expose of Jesse Jackson-Shakedown-was published, and in October of 2003 my book, SCAM: How the Black Leadership Exploits Black America was released, which featured detailed exposes of Jackson and other corrupt black leaders.

Others such as CNS News' Marc Moreno have written extensively on Jackson; and Peter Flaherty, President of the National Legal and Policy Center, has stepped in to help shed the light of truth on "the leader" of black America.

The cumulative weight of Jackson's past actions and remarks (i.e.: "Hymietown"-referring to New Yorkers during his unsuccessful 1984 Presidential campaign, consorting with enemies of the United States, etc.) has taken a serious toll.

Jackson's stock has been dropping for some time, to the point that we have decided not to hold our annual "National Day of Repudiation of Jesse Jackson" event this year. Our reasoning is simple: why give this declining demagogue any undue attention? Let him fade away on his own.

Jesse Jackson is now 63-years-old. Over the years he's perfected primarily one skill: shaking down corporations for monetary gain for himself and his cronies while posing as a public benefactor. Unlike other black leaders such as Kweisi Mfume who have noted the changing dynamics of race and politics, and changed their tactics (if not their hearts), Jackson is a dinosaur continually plying old skills in a fluid environment.

Recent case in point: While it took challenger John Kerry less than a day to concede the Presidential race, the Rainbow/PUSH website is still protesting "Ohio voting irregularities," further marginalizing Jackson.

All of this serves as a prelude to this year's Rainbow/PUSH Wall Street Project Conference. In years' past, the organization regularly received a donation from the NYSE and held its fundraising bash on the floor of the exchange. Past events featured Bill Clinton and other federal officials, including chairmen of the Federal Communications Commission, Federal Election Commission, Federal Reserve Board; and secretaries of Treasury, Commerce, and Labor. Major corporations such as Citigroup, Coca Cola, AOL Time Warner, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, AT&T, Ford Motor Company, Enron, WorldCom, General Motors, IBM, Kodak, Boeing, Merrill Lynch and the DaimlerChrysler Corporate Fund acted as sponsors. Jesse Jackson himself even rang the exchange's opening bell. Those days are over!

"We are not giving to Wall Street Project this year," Diana DeSocio, the spokeswoman for the NYSE told Cybercast News Service, declining further comment. In 2003, NYSE spokesman Rich Adamonis told the news service that the NYSE was one of Jackson's "long-term supporters" with contributions in the $100,000 per year range.

An anonymous Wall Street insider told CNS that the resignation of former NYSE chairman and Jackson friend Richard Grasso hurt, as did the departure of several NYSE board members loyal to Jackson, including former Citigroup Chairman Sandy Weil, former White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta, former AT&T Chief Executive Officer Michael Armstrong, and former New York Democratic candidate for governor Carl McCall.

The 8th Annual Rainbow/PUSH Wall Street Project Conference: "Beyond Diversity, Equity and Parity: A New Covenant" was held last week at the Hilton New York Hotel instead of the NYSE exchange floor. And reports from the event say that it was pretty dull. Gone were many of the top corporate CEO's, replaced with company representatives and diversity managers.

Sen. Hillary Clinton was one official who did speak at this year's event, with Jackson publicly referring to her as "sister."

From the day Jesse Jackson claimed that he cradled the dying Dr. King in his arms in Memphis, Jackson has essentially proclaimed himself the spokesman for black America. An embarrassingly compliant media has assisted Jackson in his aims, and, until recently, the black community has been largely silent in repudiating this wicked man. Though Jackson still enjoys pockets of strong support, I believe that black America is beginning to see what the rest of America sees when it sees Jesse Jackson.

Al Sharpton has attempted to fill the vacuum of power created by Jackson's slow demise. Sharpton has merely copied, down to his vicious anti-Semitic remarks, Jackson's actions and style, and has at least partially succeeded in resuscitating his own deservedly tarnished reputation. Yet Sharpton will not succeed in becoming the next Jesse Jackson.

Others such as Kweisi Mfume or Barak Obama may try to become the "new black leader," but ultimately, they too will not succeed. Increasingly, black Americans are beginning to understand that they should not even entertain the idea of having a "leader." The whole concept is outrageous, unnecessary, and even downright harmful to God-fearing people.

The idea of "black leaders" is also a racist one. After all, who are the white leaders in America? The obvious answer is there are none - at least ones without bedsheets.

As black Americans begin to take control of their own lives, they will seek "leaders" less, and look to God and themselves more. And as that day approaches, we will then begin to live out the true essence of Dr. King's dream, a dream that was temporarily snuffed out and hijacked by a selfish deceiver.

America is a great country, but it will truly live out its greater destiny once black Americans see the need to throw off the shackles of misplaced belief in false leadership and racial blame; and instead begin to improve the content of their own character�-one man, one woman, and one family at a time.