A Message of Service That Still Guides Us From the Honorable Reverend Jesse Jackson

On this Throwback Thursday, we reflect on the day the Honorable Reverend Jesse Jackson visited Wilmington Friends School, sharing his voice and vision with the community on February 17, 1980— a visit that still resonates with our mission today.

These words, delivered to WFS middle and upper school students by the Reverend Jesse Jackson, continue to echo across generations and reflect the Quaker values our students strive to live by each day. Jackson, an American Civil Rights activist and politician, spoke to students about the responsibility of service and the power young people hold to shape the future. He stated to the Class of 1980 who would be able to vote in the upcoming election, in reference to the power of young people, “When they make up their minds to be relevant, they can make a difference. In 1950, they saved us from McCarthyism. In 1960, when blacks in the South couldn’t eat in restaurants, students sat in and made a difference. In 1967 and 1968, in defiance of an unjust war, students stood up and made a difference.”