Published August 22. 2021 12:00AM
CHICAGO (AP) - The Rev. Jesse Jackson, a famed civil rights leader and two-time presidential candidate, and his wife, Jacqueline, have been hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19, according to a statement Saturday.
Jesse Jackson, 79, is vaccinated against the virus and received his first dose in January during a publicized event as he urged others to receive the inoculation as soon as possible. He and his wife, 77, are being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.
“Doctors are currently monitoring the condition of both,” according to the statement from Jesse Jackson’s nonprofit, the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.
“There are no further updates at this time,” the statement said. “We will provide updates as they become available.”
A protégé of the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson was key in guiding the modern civil rights movement on numerous issues, including voting rights.
Despite having been diagnosed for Parkinson’s disease, Jackson has remained active, and has advocated for COVID-19 vaccines for Black people, who lag behind white people in the United States’ vaccination drive. Earlier this month, he was arrested outside the U.S. Capitol during a demonstration calling for Congress to end the filibuster in order to support voting rights.
FILE - In this Friday, Jan. 8, 2021 file photo, Rev. Jesse Jackson receives the Pfizer's BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine from Dr. Kiran Chekka, Covid Administration Physician at the Roseland Community Hospital in Chicago. The Rev. Jesse Jackson and his wife, Jacqueline, have been hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19 according to a statement Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021. He is vaccinated against the virus and publicly received his first dose in January. According to a statement released Saturday evening, the Jacksons are being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. He is 79 years old. Jacqueline Jackson is 77. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)
FILE - In this Monday, Aug. 2, 2021 file photo, Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks to the crowd during a demonstration supporting the voting rights, on Capitol Hill, in Washington. The Rev. Jesse Jackson and his wife, Jacqueline, have been hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19 according to a statement Saturday, Aug. 21, 2021. He is vaccinated against the virus and publicly received his first dose in January. According to a statement released Saturday evening, the Jacksons are being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. He is 79 years old. Jacqueline Jackson is 77. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks to the crowd during a demonstration supporting voting rights on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Rev. Jesse Jackson shake hands with supporters as they protest outside of the Hart Senate Office Building, during demonstration supporting the voting rights, on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
Rev. William Barber accompanied by Rev. Liz Theoharis and Rev. Jesse Jackson right, protest, during the Voting Rights rally on Capitol Hill, in Washington, Monday, Aug. 2, 2021. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)