How Jesse Jackson shaped Chicago education, from protesting school segregation to reopening Dyett HS

Source WBEZ
Original Load Date Feb. 21, 2026, 6 a.m.
Last Updated Feb. 21, 2026, 6 a.m.
Original URL https://www.wbez.org/education/2026/02/21/how-jesse-jackson-shaped-chicago-education-from-protesting-school-segregation-to-reopening-dyett-hs

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When the Rev. Jesse Jackson arrived in Chicago in 1964, he came face to face with a segregated school system where Black and Latino students attempted to learn in schools so overcrowded that hallways became classrooms and supplies were scarce. He quickly jumped into the fight to end disparities in e...