DeAnza High School
and Nicole Wong
Lowell High School
The Reverend Jesse Jackson told a packed audience at San Francisco State recently that it is the duty of all world citizens to transcend color and culture.
"We're going to live together as brothers and sisters or we're going to die apart as fools," Jackson said.
The 1995 Honoree of the World Citizen's Association, an organization that sends a representative to the United Nations, Jackson was one of the speakers at the four-day 1995 Alliance For Progressive Global Change.
"It was wonderful, he kept referring to struggles for social justice," said World Citizen's Association President Doug Mattern. "He reaches across the age and color lines."
Jackson gave an eloquent speech naming weak leadership, barriers of race and religion and the use of confrontation versus negotiation as some of the country's problems.
"Just as we see hope and healing in South Africa, there is a prevailing wind of hurt in the United States," Jackson said.
He criticized the Clinton administration for its indecisive, `race-exclusive' policies and asked for oppressed peoples to have `moral and ethical standards higher than the cultural norm.'
Some opposing Jesse Jackson denounced his speech altogether, saying it was too generalized and noncommittal to his position as an African-American leader.
"Why isn't Jesse Jackson attacking the global system of dominance known as white supremacy?," Imhotep Pease said.
Though Jackson did criticize President Clinton, many like Pease feel that Jackson, as well as Clinton, are puppets of this system, and that Jackson should focus on the bigger picture.
Younger members of the audience mentioned that the conference, which promised to `shatter the Generation X stereotype,' failed in this segment because Jackson did not give a clear definition of Generation X-ers' responsibilities as world citizens.
However, Jules Dunham said, "Youth are in the best position to do that (make changes) because we're expected to be radical, unorganized and disarrayed, but we're more organized than ever and ready to let them know that youth is on the scene."
Jackson began his speech with a reflection on Civil Rights struggles of the past but went on to discuss the potential rewards of peaceful negotiation in countries such as Cuba, Iraq, and North and South Korea.
He also used the Biblical stories of Noah, Joseph and the Good Samaritan to illustrate his points. "Joseph was a minority with a majority dream."
The multicultural crowd seemed awed by the speech, at times bursting into shouts of appreciation.
"He was very enthusiastic and inspiring to young people," Patrick Mendis said. "He's an inspiring speaker and should be on the national scene."
Another audience member, Ricardo Gomes, also saw the political side in Jackson's speech.
"It was very invigorating and reminiscent of the '84 and '88 speeches. I was very inspired because I thought Jesse Jackson had lost his fire ... he spoke about relevant topics and if he brings them to the campaign, he'll get lots of support and attention. He got my attention."
Willie Brown, the San Francisco mayoral candidate who introduced the activist, echoed hopes for Jackson's presidential campaign in 1996. Mention of the campaign put a slight damper on the evening for some attending because Jackson later asked for donations to fulfill his 1988 campaign debt.
Jackson closed his speech by engaging the audience in chants of "Keep hope alive, give peace a chance."
"I enjoyed it (the recitation)," audience member Dionne Green said. "It's a way of affirming self-esteem and humanity in people."