Jesse Jackson is an American civil rights leader, Baptist minister, and politician. Born on October 8, 1941, in Greenville, South Carolina, he became a prominent figure in the civil rights movement during the 1960s. Jackson worked closely with Martin Luther King Jr. and played a significant role in advocating for racial equality and social justice. In addition to his activism, Jackson ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988, becoming the first African American to make a serious bid for the presidency. He founded the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, an organization focused on promoting economic and social justice for marginalized communities.