King’s dream fueled service mission for Vero advocate

The year was 1968.

Elizabeth Jackson was 17 years old practicing songs with the youth choir at church when the news spread, quickly hushing the sounds of joy at her Gainesville church. 

Martin Luther King Jr., whose dream of equality awakened a nation five years before, was shot and killed in Memphis, Tennessee. A sense of hopelessness settled in.

“We all cried and we couldn’t practice,” Jackson said. “Our pastor at Bartley Temple United Methodist Church came by to pray with us.”

It was a memory that stayed with her through the years as she turned King’s vision into a personal mission for the next five decades, signing up voters and fighting for civil rights. Now, Dr. Jackson is being recognized for her achievements to improve the community and bring resources to underserved areas.

Jackson, state deputy director for Faith in Florida, will serve as grand marshal for the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Parade, an honor bringing her full circle to the man who inspires generations like her. Jackson, described by many as a gentle-spirited leader, says she was very surprised to be asked to serve such a prestigious position.  

The parade – one of many held nationally – is held every year on the federal holiday honoring King along 45th Street in Gifford. Community activists who work with Jackson believe her service is her resume…and it speaks for itself.

“She’s been out there grinding. Dr. Jackson is doing the valley work. She empowered her community. It’s important to recognize people like her,” said Tony Brown, president of the Indian River County NAACP chapter. “I’m proud she’s being honored.”

A Sense of Mission

After living out history where Blacks struggled to get the power to go to the ballot box, Jackson said she firmly understands the power of voter education, including registration and mobilization – getting people to the polls.

It’s why observers said she and Rev. Rhonda Thomas, executive director of Faith in Florida, worked relentlessly with Desmond Meade – the voting rights activist who is now the President of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition. The community advocates led a mission to garner more than 3,000 signatures in Congressional District 8 to get state Amendment 4 on the ballot in 2018. 

“I got involved with (Meade) because there were a lot of people in my congregation who had relatives in jail. When released, they didn’t have the same rights as other citizens – they couldn’t vote,” said Jackson, who served as a regional community organizer under FRRC for the 2018 Voting Rights Restoration Amendment Campaign. “I believe in second chances. Once a person gets their voting rights restored, they get their dignity back.”

The Voting Rights Restoration Amendment (Amendment 4) – passed by Florida voters in 2018 – restored voting rights to felony offenders except those convicted of murder or sexual offenses, according to the Florida Commission on Offender Review.

The roughly 3,000 petitions were needed in seven congressional districts in order to trigger a Florida Supreme Court review of the amendment language to place on the 2018 ballot, Jackson said. District 8 – which includes all of Brevard and Indian River counties – was the first to achieve that goal.

The move is a philosophical pillar of Faith in Florida – the multicultural, statewide religious organization formed to protect the rights of citizens and strengthen democracy, Jackson said.  

With Jackson’s statewide efforts to help restore voting rights to returning citizens, among other endeavors, community leaders agree that Jackson is the right person to lead this year’s King parade that will draw out hundreds of youth and other residents.  

King Parade

The parade begins at 10 a.m. Monday – the Martin Luther King Jr. Day federal observance and the birthday of the civil rights icon.

The parade route starts on 28th Court next to Gifford Middle School, then heads west along 45th Street and north on 43rd Avenue. The route ends at the Victor Hart Sr. Community Enhancement Complex.

A program is usually held afterwards at the complex to honor the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. King., whose marches for justice brought him to St. Augustine in 1964 to champion the historic Civil Rights Act. The theme for this year’s activities is “Together We Are the Dream.”

The keynote speaker for the annual MLK Jr. Scholarship banquet will be Quentin Jerome Plair, the son of Fred and Earthine Plair, who are both founding members of the Indian River County Martin Luther King Jr. Birthday Committee, organizers say. The ticketed banquet event will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Gifford Youth Achievement Center, 4875 43rd Avenue. 

Servant of the community

Jackson described her role in the community as a “fearless freedom fighter.”

Today the community advocate keeps a busy schedule focused on forming solutions to fight systemic racial and economic issues leading to poverty. She is the civic engagement and political action chair with the local NAACP, and is also the senior pastor and CEO of Life Changers Global Nation Ministries Inc. in Vero Beach. 

Jackson is a 36-year member and past president of the Treasure Coast Florida chapter of Links Inc., one of the nation’s oldest and largest volunteer service organizations of women dedicated to sustaining the economic survival of people in the African diaspora.

With Links, Jackson over the years organized health symposiums educating the public on COVID-19 and heart health.

Efforts like helping others to help themselves shows Jackson has a heart of compassion for her community, said Stevon Dean, Lead Organizer for Faith in Florida. 

“This honor couldn’t have been given to anyone more deserving. I have known Dr. Jackson for over 25 years as a pastor, friend and mentor. Your dedication and tireless efforts as a community advocate is not only appreciated, but celebrated by all whose lives you have impacted over the years,” Dean said. 

“Your labor has not been in vain; and your commitment echoes the spirit and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Your passion for creating positive change exemplifies the very essence of his vision. Thank you for your remarkable service, leadership, and your unwavering support for the betterment of your community.”  

Kevin Browning, education committee chair with the local NAACP, said Jackson was crucial in her role organizing voter turnouts and bringing other vital information to the community. 

“She is a servant of the community,” Browning said. “Her work is important. It will give everyone an equal footing in education, employment and life in general.”

Barbara Lipton, community activist and member of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Vero Beach, said Jackson is one of the hardest working people in Indian River County. Lipton said she’s delighted that Jackson was chosen as grand marshal for the MLK parade. 

“She’s got her fingers on the pulse of everything happening in the Black community and Indian River County. She’s always eager to work with other groups,” said Lipton, a life member of the local NAACP chapter. “She was one of the few Black women ministers at the time to preach in Vero Beach.”

Lipton, a member of the coalition for racial justice at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Vero Beach, said she has been marching at the MLK parade for more than 30 years. The tradition will continue for Lipton this year as she plans to march with up to 50 church members down 45th Street.    

Remembering King’s Impact

Jackson has reviewed countless accolades and honors over her life, but being selected to be grand marshal brings a sense of reflection for Jackson. 

She watched King’s renowned “I Have A Dream” speech on television in 1963 when she was 12 years old. King delivered the now historic speech at the March on Washington, where nearly 250,000 people had gathered to hear the young activist.  

Listening to the captivating words from the famed minister left Jackson feeling hopeful.

“I felt that we would overcome and have a future of peace and equality,” Jackson said.    

Jackson got another glimpse of King’s imposing presence in 2014 when she visited the Stone of Hope statue in D.C. Jackson said she cried as she looked at the towering granite statue – standing 30 feet tall – showing King’s image.

“When I stood at the base of Dr. King’s statue, I looked like an ant,” Jackson said. “That’s how big his dream is – it’s bigger than we are. He was a warrior.”

The colossal sculpture shows King in a suit, with a fearless gaze, his arms crossed and one hand holding his rolled-up “I Have A Dream” speech. Jackson recalled one of King’s sayings from a sermon that he delivered in a church one year to the day he would be assassinated.

“We need leaders not in love with money, but in love with justice. Not in love with publicity, but in love with humanity,” King told a New York congregation on April 4, 1967.

King’s influence led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, passed after he led marches in Florida highlighting the injustices of segregation. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the groundbreaking law, which prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, sex or national origin. 

Next year will be the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which banned discriminatory voting procedures against Black people, including literacy tests as a prerequisite to vote.

Florida: The struggles continue

As Florida continues to experience the rollback of diversity initiatives by Gov. Ron DeSantis at public institutions, revised school curriculums that gloss over the violent history of chattel slavery and the removal of African-American AP courses, Jackson said the effort to preserve King’s dream seems to be floundering among leaders today.

“As we look at what’s happening politically to our democracy, we see our communities eroding,” Jackson said. “It seems we’re fighting the same fight we did during the Civil Rights Movement. MLK fought that fight. We must continue to build on the legacy of the Freedom Fighters.”

Following King’s assassination, civil rights leaders pushed for 15 years for Martin Luther King Jr. Day to be approved by the federal government. Then on Nov. 2, 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed the King Holiday Bill into law, declaring the third Monday in January a federal holiday to honor King, according to the National Museum of African American History & Culture.

‘My work is here’

Jackson said she believes she was assigned by God to do community work in Vero Beach. 

“I love the people in the community,” Jackson said.

Jackson met Dr. Thomas Jackson – her future husband – while he was in medical school in Gainesville. The couple married in 1972 and moved to Vero Beach in 1977.

Thomas Jackson would become the first Black physician and cardiologist to practice medicine in Indian River County, starting his medical practice off 20th Street. The Jacksons were married for 33 years before Thomas Jackson passed away in 2005.

Thomas Jackson is the son of well-known Gifford activist Walter Jackson, the first Black person elected to the Indian River County School Board in 1964. Elizabeth Jackson said she considers her father-in-law a community pillar, serving as inspiration for her to continue to serve the underserved. 

From organizing town halls and workshops statewide on voter education, to hosting listening sessions to understand community issues, Jackson’s focus is solely on serving the people. Jackson said it’s important to understand what impacts residents on a daily basis – including healthcare and living wages – and to put people in office who have the community’s best interest at heart.

“Our vote is our power…our voice,” Jackson said. “The only way to make a difference is to be a registered voter.”