Elected officials and civil rights leaders in Will County remembered the Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. as a tireless fighter for equal rights and a voice for the voiceless.

Jackson was 84 when he died Tuesday. He was a protege of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and ran twice for U.S. president.

As a young organizer in Chicago, Jackson was called to meet with King at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, shortly before King was killed, and he publicly positioned himself thereafter as King’s successor, according to the Associated Press.

In a statement, the Rev. Craig Purchase, president of the Joliet chapter of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, called Jackson “one of the greatest men of our time.”

“From the beginning of his life’s work, he dedicated himself relentlessly to justice, equality, and opportunity for all — especially for those who had too often been pushed aside and denied their full humanity,” Purchase said.

In 1971, Jackson established the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, which was the result of a merger between Operation PUSH and the Rainbow Coalition, according to the organization’s website.

Jackson carried a message that became a national call to action: “Keep hope alive,” according to the Joliet chapter.

The statement from the Joliet chapter said Jackson “fought tirelessly for equal rights” not only for Black and brown Americans but for “all people whose voices” had been marginalized by discrimination and injustice.

“[Jackson] once spoke (four) words that changed lives — ‘I am somebody.’ To some, those words may sound simple today. But to children growing up in the hardest places of America, they restored dignity and affirmed worth. I was one of those children,” Purchase said.

In a Facebook post, Warren Dorris Jr., the senior pastor of Prayer Tower Ministries in Joliet, said he was “favored to be introduced” to Jackson by the Rev. Isaac Singleton, a pastor for Mount Zion Baptist Church in Joliet.

Like Jackson, Singleton had also marched with King during the civil rights movement. Dorris said he was blessed to succeed Singleton as president of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition in Will County in 1996.

“This position put me upfront and personal with Rev. Jackson. I traveled with him to many places, including our nation’s capitol. He was serious about helping everyone who needed help, especially if they were being negatively affected [by] systems that were not fair,” Dorris said.

State Rep. Dagmara Avelar, D-Romeoville, recalled her first organizing training as a young community organizer included Jackson.

“I remember sitting there knowing this mattered, that I was witnessing something bigger than myself. That moment planted a seed. Today, I carry deep gratitude for the lessons, the courage and the path that began there. Rest in power, Rev. Jesse Jackson,” Avelar said.

U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly, D-Matteson, said Jackson’s “faith, courage, and lifelong fight for justice improved our democracy and inspired generations.”

“I’m honored to have called Rev. Jackson a friend, supporter, and constituent. May he rest in power,” she said.

Kelly is seeking the Democratic nomination in the March primary for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Dick Durbin, who is not seeking reelection.

U.S. Rep. Bill Foster, D-Naperville, called Jackson a “giant of the civil rights movement.”

“Throughout his lifetime, he was a voice for the voiceless and strengthened our commitment to justice for all,” Foster said.

U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville, said Jackson was a “hero to kids like me growing up” in northern Illinois.

“His fierce fight for justice extended from the civil rights era to today, as we continue to build the multiracial democracy he embraced as the Rainbow Coalition,” Underwood said.

Jackson’s presidential campaigns were “moral statements that affirmed the dignity, capability and leadership of Black Americans” on the national stage, according to the Joliet chapter of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition

“Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson Sr. did not simply challenge injustice. He transformed how people saw themselves and one another. His legacy will live on through every life he touched and every movement he inspired,” Purchase said.