Page 10 The Skanner November 22, 2017
News
Rev. Jesse Jackson Announces Parkinson’s Diagnosis
FREDDIE ALLEN/AMG/NNPA
Friends, medical community weigh in on Rev. Jesse Jackson’s Parkinson’s diagnosis
Civil rights icon Reverend Jesse Jackson, Sr., recently announced that he has Parkinson’s disease. This
photo was taken during the recent 2017 Rainbow PUSH Coalition Global Automotive Summit.
By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire Contributor
R
everend Jesse Jackson’s Parkin-
son’s disease diagnosis caught
many by surprise, but those who
know him said they’re confident
that he’ll overcome the life-threatening
challenge before him.
“He’s in the rumble of his life, but
he’s rumbled some big foes before,”
said Vincent Hughes, a Democratic
state senator from Pennsylvania who
campaigned for Jackson in 1984 and
again in 1988. Hughes said that Jack-
son’s campaigns were birthed in the
Black empowerment movement that
followed the Civil Rights Movement
of the 1960s. “I’m one of those African
Americans, who took office and was a
part of that issue of ‘protest to power’
and Rev. Jackson was, in many respects,
our leader — and he still is.”
More than anyone else, Jackson
opened the door for the election of
Barack Obama, the first African Ameri-
can President of the United States, said
Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr., the president
and CEO of the National Newspaper
Publishers Association (NNPA). Cha-
vis was one of Jackson’s contemporar-
ies during the Civil Rights Movement.
“Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr., is a living,
global civil rights icon. As a colleague
in the Civil Rights Movement dating
back to the 1960s and under the lead-
ership of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther
King, Jr., I have personally witnessed
the selfless sacrifice and dedication of
Rev. Jackson.”
Chavis continued: “For all who have
cried out for freedom justice and equal-
ity, the news of his Parkinson’s disease
should only serve to re-dedicate a
movement now for healthcare equality
for all, not only as a civil right, but as a
human right.”
On Nov. 17, Jackson, 76, issued a state-
ment informing the world of his illness.
In the statement, Jackson recalled his
foray into activism, being arrested on
July 17, 1960 with seven other college
students who advocated for the right to
use a public library in his hometown of
Greenville, S.C.
He said that he remembers the arrest
as if it happened yesterday and it was a
day that forever changed his life.
“From that experience, I lost my fear
of being jailed for a righteous cause. I
went on to meet Dr. King and dedicate
my heart and soul to the fight for jus-
tice, equality, and equal access,” said
Jackson, whose multiracial National
Rainbow Coalition grew out of his work
in the 1984 presidential campaign.
He said he resisted interrupting his
work to visit a doctor, but his daily
physical struggles intensified and he
could no longer ignore his symptoms.
“
He’s in the rumble
of his life, but he’s
rumbled some big
foes before
“After a battery of tests, my physi-
cians identified the issue as Parkin-
son’s disease, a disease that bested my
father,” Jackson said.
Rev. Al Sharpton issued a statement
saying that he spent time with Jackson
and his family in New York, as Jackson
made the announcement of his illness.
“As I watched him, I was reminded of
the greatness of this man,” Sharpton
said. “Reverend Jackson has changed
the nation and served in ways in which
he never got credit.”
Maynard Eaton, a journalist and na-
tional director of communications for
the Southern Christian Leadership
Conference, called Jackson a legendary
and fearless civil rights champion.
He said the disease may slow Jackson,
but won’t stop him.
“Activism and civil rights are in his
blood. As a journalist, Jesse Jackson has
been a treat and joy to cover and write
about,” said Eaton. “He has been a civ-
il rights darling and media maverick…
Jesse Jackson is a quintessential and
preeminent civil rights activist of our
time.”
Even though Parkinson’s disease is
a chronic neurological condition, it is
very treatable, said Dr. Nabila Dahod-
wala, an associate professor of neurol-
ogy at the Perelman School of Medicine
at the University of Pennsylvania.
“A diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease
does not necessarily mean that you
must make drastic changes, but every
individual is different in how they are
affected, how they respond to treat-
ment and how they choose to spend
their time,” Dahodwala said.
Ihtsham ul Haq, an expert in neurol-
ogy at the Wake Forest School of Med-
icine, said he believes Jackson will do
well.
“Though each patient’s journey with
Parkinson’s disease is a little bit differ-
ent. Thankfully, for many the symp-
toms are often well-managed with med-
ication, said Haq. “The hallmark of the
disease is the slow loss of dopamine
in the brain, which unlocks our move-
ment.”
Haq continued: “As patients begin to
produce less of it they show the slow-
ness, stiffness, and tremor that typify
the disease. Replacing dopamine usu-
ally substantially alleviates these prob-
lems.”
Leslie A. Chambers, the president and
CEO of the American Parkinson Dis-
ease Association, said making appro-
priate lifestyle changes and focusing
on physical therapy will go a very long
way to helping Jackson live the best life
possible, in spite of the disease.
“Since its a lifelong chronic illness,
the American Parkinson Disease As-
sociation encourages people with Par-
kinson’s to seek out a top notch medical
and healthcare team, which includes a
movement disorders specialist physi-
cian and allied healthcare providers
and protect and defend their overall
health status with a nutritious diet,
physical therapy and safe, effective dai-
ly exercise programs, as well as emo-
tional and social support from family,
and professional care partners-givers,”
Chambers said, adding that the associ-
ation extends heartfelt wishes to Jack-
son.
Dorothy Leavell, the chairman of the
NNPA and the publisher of the Cru-
sader Newspaper Group said that even
though Jackson is in for the fight of his
life, she warned that Parkinson’s dis-
ease had met its match.
“This is a major blow, but it’s not the
death knell,” said Leavell. “We will keep
working and encourage Jesse with all
he’s done for us and continues to do.”
