84-Year-Old Rev. Jesse Jackson Hospitalized For The Fith Time In Five Years

Rev. Jesse Jackson is back in the hospital for treatment months after a new neurodegenerative condition diagnosis.

The politician and ordained Baptist minister rose to fame during the civil rights movement as the young protégé of Martin Luther King Jr. 

Rev. Jesse Jackson founded the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, a Chicago-based non-profit organization, which announced his recent hospitalization. The update reportedly marks his fifth trip to the hospital for treatment in five years.

According to a recent update from the Rainbow PUSH Coalition, Jackson has been hospitalized and is currently under observation for progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP).

They revealed that he was diagnosed with the neurodegenerative condition in April after initially receiving a Parkinson's disease diagnosis years earlier.

TMZ reported that Jackson had been battling the disorder for about ten years, noting the non-profit organization did not share further details about his treatment. "The family appreciates all prayers at this time," the group added in their announcement.

The update marks Jackson's fifth hospitalization in five years. He underwent a successful surgery for abdominal discomfort in February 2021 and was later hospitalized after testing positive for COVID-19 months later.

In November 2021, Jackson was reportedly hospitalized for overnight observation after falling and hitting his head at Howard University. A month before his most recent hospitalization, Jackson was reportedly admitted for a lung infection.

As stated, Jackson was initially diagnosed with Parkinson's disease before his condition was confirmed to be PSP in April 2025. He made his Parkinson's disease diagnosis public in 2017, dropping a lengthy statement about his illustrious career and how time had changed him.

"My family and I began to notice changes about three years ago. For a while, I resisted interrupting my work to visit a doctor. But as my daily physical struggles intensified, I could no longer ignore the symptoms, so I acquiesced," Jackson wrote.

The politician explained that he underwent a series of tests until doctors identified the issue as Parkinson's disease, the exact condition his late father had. Jackson, per NPR, confessed that it was difficult to accept his diagnosis. Nonetheless, he vowed the neurodegenerative condition wouldn't stop him.

Jackson will undoubtedly go down in history for his political, religious, and civil rights achievements. However, it was impossible to forget the time he shocked the world with the revelation of a four-year affair with a woman named Karin Stanford.

The affair became public in 2001, with Stanford revealing she had welcomed a daughter, Ashley, with the politician despite his years-long union with his wife, Jacqueline Brown. The controversial mistress was far from remorseful, telling ABC News:

"I'm convinced she is supposed to be here, and I am supposed to be her mom. And I'm very proud of that."

Stanford confessed that she was smitten the first time she met Jackson when she was completing her doctoral dissertation on his foreign policy record. Their relationship turned romantic after their reunion in the mid-1990s, when Stanford worked as a professor at the University of Georgia.

Although Jackson's affair with Stanford became public in 2001, their daughter, Ashley, was born two years prior in 1999. As stated, he was married to his longtime spouse, with whom he welcomed five other children.

The children from his legal relationship are Santita, Jesse Jr., Jonathan, Yusef, and Jacqueline Lavinia. Much like their father, Jackson's kids have gone on to make a name for themselves in various sectors, from entertainment to politics.

Santita rose to fame as a singer, with PrimeTimer reporting that she performed the National Anthem at the second inauguration of then-president Bill Clinton. Jesse Jr. is a former Democrat Representative from Illinois, with Jonathan equally making waves in the political scene.

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Jackson has a net worth of $4 million. He rose to fame as a protégé of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960s during the civil rights movement. He worked alongside King in the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), becoming a powerful voice for progressive causes.

Much like his mentor, Jackson possessed the charisma needed to unify other activists. His charm, oratorical skill, and civil rights fame eventually helped him garner immense support from the Black community when he ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988.

Beyond politics, Jackson reportedly negotiated the release of hostages and political prisoners in Syria, Cuba, and Iraq. He earned the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2000 and continued using his influence to pave the way for future Black politicians and activists.