Jackson biographer David Masciotra said the South gave Jackson “a sense of the oppression and the persecution that he wanted to fight.”

The US civil rights activist's influence spread from the churches of the Deep South to the White House.

Jesse Jackson, was a tireless activist, skilled diplomat and influential politician who made two transformative presidential runs in the 1980s.

A look back at the remarkable life of the US civil rights activist, who died on Tuesday aged 84.

Jackson’s two presidential runs brought the civil rights movement into the heart of the Democratic party and opened doors for others to walk through

Jackson biographer David Masciotra said the South gave Jackson “a sense of the oppression and the persecution that he wanted to fight.”