HELENA BURNS DIED AGED 92 AND WAS A GIANT OF CIVIL RIGHTS IN SELMA ALABAMA

USPA NEWS - Helen Burns Jackson, the mother of civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, has died. She was 92. Rev. Jesse Jackson told his mother died Monday morning in her longtime hometown of Greenville, South Carolina. "She was laid to rest here after a two-day celebration of her life." Jesse Jackson said worthily.

HELENA BURNS WAS ONT THE GIANTS OF CIVIL RIGHTS IN SELMA ALABAMA GREENVILLE, S.C., Sept. 14 “” “Today I attended the funeral of the Mother of Selma, Mrs.´ Jesse Jackson said. In Selma, Alabama. She was one of the GIANTS of civil rights. Mrs. Boynton Robinson convinced Dr. King to come to Selma and he did. Many times Dr. King stayed in her home. I read that she began her political career at age 10, when she rode the buggy with her mother to notify residents that it time to go register and vote. Please read about her, tell your children and family about her. Remember her. She lived to be 104 but we may never again see the likes of Mrs. Amelia Boynton's resolve and courage. Many from all walks of life came to pay their respects today. She touches us all. Rest in heavenly peace, Mrs. We are indebted to Mrs. We are honoured because she lived. We marched with the Selma foot soldiers today. In honour of Mrs. #AmeliaBoyntonRobinson, remember, “ŽVotingMatters. KeepHopeAlive! Love you guys.´ Rev Jesse Jackson said. My family and I thank you for all of the love, acts of kindness, prayers and words of encouragement extended during this difficult time. Here is Rev Jesse Jackson´s testimony and sharing as a tribute to his mother.

CELEBRATING THE LIFE AND LEGACY OF HELEN BURN JACKSON GREENVILLE, S.C., Sept. 14 “” Helen Burns Jackson was laid to rest here after a two-day celebration of her life and the legacy she leaves in her accomplished sons, the icon “” Rev. Jesse L. Jackson “” and the impresario “” Charles “Chuck“ Jackson. With tear-stained faces, the brothers Jackson leaned over and took in their mother´s countenance one last time before closing her casket during funeral services Monday at Springfield Baptist Church, founded by former slaves. Former President Bill Clinton, a longtime Jackson family friend, sat next to the Rev. Jackson during much of the four-hour service. When it was the president´s turn to speak, he marvelled at how far Mrs. Jackson came from being a 17-year-old unwed mother to raising two sons who changed the social, cultural and political landscape of the nation, even the world. “This woman had beauty, brains, musical talent,“ Clinton said. “What could have been bad luck, she turned in to God´s great fortune. These sons didn´t have to turn out like they did. Thank you God for this great free woman.“ Clinton said he´s known Jesse Jackson since 1977 and had met his mother several times, adding, “I remember her beaming when I was honored to award Jesse the Presidential Medal of Freedom.“ More than 1,000 mourners turned out to celebrate the life of the woman known as “Mama Helen,“ over two days, which included a gospel concert featuring Marvin Winans, Kim Stratton, Darius Brooks and her granddaughters, Felicia Jackson and Santita Jackson, whose own rendition of Mahalia Jackson´s “Trouble of the World“ moved audience members with its honeyed mix of sorrow and joy.----------------------------------------------Politicians, ministers and thought leaders traveled from throughout the country to honor the woman and support her family, including her first-born, the man who could be president, and according to several speakers, most certainly paved the way for the national first black president, Barack Obama. Her youngest son, Chuck, would pen several hits, including Whitney Houston´s “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,“ and Natalie Cole´s "This Will Be," "Inseparable," "Sophisticated Lady" "Our Love," and "I've Got Love on My Mind," among others.

Several current and former elected officials attended the celebrations, including Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-SC), former Rep. Cleo Fields (D-LA), South Carolina State Rep. Karl Allen, standing in for Gov. Nikki Haley, former South Carolina Gov. Richard Riley, who also served as U.S. Secretary of Education. Condolences streamed in from President and Mrs. Obama, South Africa President Jacob Zuma, Republic of Guinea President Alpha Conde, British House of Commons MP Keith Vaz, and former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. Bishops of several influential congregations also sent prayers: Charles Ellis of Detroit, Noel Jones of Gardena, California, and T.D. Jakes of Dallas. The Rev. Al Sharpton spoke of Mrs. Jackson´s influence on his life, notably how her oldest son talked about her journey from teen mother to businesswoman and matriarch. He recalled how the Rev. Jackson called his mother before every TV appearance. One day the reverend was running late and asked Sharpton to make the call for him: “That´s how I got her phone number,“ Sharpton quipped. “His greatest quest was to make her proud.“ The Rev. Jackson´s message “I am somebody“ resonated with Sharpton as a youth growing up virtually fatherless in Brooklyn´s housing projects. That was a message he said he needed to hear. Mrs. Jackson once told Sharpton how she was ridiculed for being a teenage mother: “They ridiculed me when Jesse was born,“ she told him. “They don´t ridicule me no more.“ Rev. Jackson told the congregation a story he often tells about his favorite Christmas: His father was out of work, and his mother was ill. They went to church and came home to find six bags of groceries on the porch, which they thought had been delivered to them by mistake. Mrs. Jackson told the boys to take the groceries inside and not to touch them, in case the true owners showed up. A few days later, a neighbourhood man, a veteran, who could not read nor write came to the house, seeing the bags sitting by the Christmas tree. When the man saw the groceries, he said to Mrs. Jackson, “You have some lazy boys. You´re sick, why haven´t they put them up?“------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Mrs. Jackson said, “It´s not their fault this time. Somebody delivered them by mistake.“ The man said his pension check came through, the one she had helped me fill out papers for, so “I bought the groceries for you.“ Mrs. Jackson said: “There was no note on them.“ He said: “You know I can´t write.“ As a social worker by nature, helping people in her community, she modelled Christian values in her very being. Clinton told the Jackson brothers, “Your mother was a national treasure.“ Rev Jesse Jackson. Rest in Peace Great Madame !