Jesse Jackson on Elvis Presley

[Ⓐ&Ⓔ Biography]

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Jesse Jackson
• Elvis Presley
• yt:stretch=16:9

[blueyisblue1]

And yet some MJ loonies and other idiots hurl abuse at Elvis and even stoop so low as to suggest this great man was a racist.... Lord rest his soul....

[donn409]

I was wrong about Jesse Jackson. He is a good guy after all. Not just because he had kind words for ELVIS but because he could stand back and look at the big picture and make a informed judgement about ELVIS' contribution to the world.

[grandmachristine42]

I loved Elvis when I was 12, but by the time I was 18 we had both changed a great deal and I no longer cared about him. But still, how could anybody think he was a racist? True, "In The Ghetto " wasn't really heavy-duty, but it was a decent song. And Elvis was a decent guy. He just got too big and so the plastic people glomed onto him and overwhelmed him. He was never a pig.

[donn409]

@Phillysoc You claim I hang around with wacko conservatives. You do know that stalking is against the law?

[Phillysoc]

@donn409 You were wrong about Jesse Jackson because of the wacko conservatives you hang around with that denounce everything he says. Most of the time the guy is on the mark. Just just decided to listen now because the subject was Elvis.

[keetonplace]

WOW, I never saw this. He summed it up perfectly. But Elvis embraced the black music and befriended many black entertainers long before he took that stage in Vegas with the Sweets and on until his death. There was not a racist bone in his body. To the contrary, he would fight to have them on stage with him as he did in the 68 Special. Ask any of the Sweets. They will tell you and they were with him from '69 until his death. It is IGNORANCE that prevails among those who think differently.

[hotathlete2]

@jenniferalls very well said, I agree!

[tupelo8135]

This is great. Im sick of various ignorant individuals claiming-with NO EVIDENCE WHATSOEVER-that Elvis was a racist. That couldn't be further from the truth. Blueyisblue is 100% correct-a lot of it HAS came from crackpot MJ fans in the last couple of years. I happen to be an admirer of Michael Jackson and his music, however the bile spouted by a minority of his fans about Elvis is sickening. And jenniferalls-your comment is absolutely right!!Elvis loved people. A truly good-hearted man.

[hotathlete2]

Well said Jesse.

[bronson1921]

Rev. Jesse Jackson provides the broader picture of Elvis' contribution. Rev. Ralph Abernathy similarly said that Elvis did much to advance the black equality, bringing black music and culture to white audiences & making them aware of the social injustice that was widespread in American society. Rev. Jackson speaks with much wisdom: "he refused to detach himself from his sources of motivation & inspiration..(The Sweets embodied that) In his OWN way,Elvis led a breakthru" for the black equality.