Former Democratic presidential candidate Jesse Jackson was in Salt Lake City today. The Baptist minister and civil rights activist delivered the keynote address for the University of Utah’s Martin Luther King Jr. Celebrations. Before his address, Jackson argued that the U would benefit from a more multicultural student body.
In a press conference on campus, Reverend Jackson told reporters that Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream for America is not yet fulfilled, that Americans need to work to level the playing field and eliminate poverty. And he argued, we need to learn to live together, calling on the University of Utah to recruit a more diverse student body.
“One needs to see the advantage of multicultural education, the advantage of having a classmate of a different race, from another economic stratum,” said Jackson, “One must see the advantage of learning to develop coping skills. Those who cannot cope cannot lead.”
Jackson pointed to the recent Presidential election as an example.
“You saw in this last campaign, one leader who looked at America through a door, one who looked at America through a keyhole,” said Jackson, “And the keyhole candidate lost, and the one who saw America through a door won.”
Jackson invited students to join his Rainbow/PUSH coalition, a progressive organization which works for social justice and civil rights.
