Interview with Jesse Jackson on MLK March
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Quick update on Syria. Syria's foreign minister warns against any possible military strike saying, quote, "Syria is not easy to swallow." The White House says there's little doubt that the chemical weapons were used on a massive scale there. White House Spokesman Jay Carney says the Syrian regime is responsible. This, as Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel says the U.S. is quote, "ready to go," if President Obama orders attacks. His comments come days after the U.S. moved warships armed with cruise missiles into the Mediterranean Sea. A senior Defense Department official tells CNN that any strike could be completed in days. Meanwhile, in Syria, U.N. inspectors will not examine suspected chemical attack sites in Damascus for a second day now. They were turned back because of security concerns.</s>MARTIN LUTHER KING JR, ACTIVIST: I have a dream.</s>KING: Let freedom ring.</s>MALVEAUX: Tomorrow marks 50 years since the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr shared his vision of racial harmony. His "I Have a Dream" speech marked a turning point in this nation's fight for racial equality. King's march on Washington drew more than 200,000 people to the National Mall. Civil rights leader, Jesse Jackson, was part of Dr. King's inner circle. He was in the crowd that day. He was one of Dr. King's advisors. He was just 21 years old at the time and was a student leader. He has since become one of the country's foremost political figures. The Reverend Jesse Jackson joining us from Washington. Reverend, good to see you as always.</s>JESSE JACKSON, CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: Good to see you.</s>MALVEAUX: I want to talk about that moment that day back in 1963. What was it that stood out in your mind when you were among a sea of people? Did you realize what you were on the precipice.</s>JACKSON: So much black and white interaction that was prohibited across much of the South. Hope meant despair and encouragement how this after all, from Texas across to farther up to Maryland. We couldn't use a single public toilet. We could not public facilities by law. Racial apartheid was enforced by law. And that kind of an oasis in that desert. Dr. King took us to another level. It was fair to say it was in a certain climate, the speech, and</s>MALVEAUX: I want to play a bit. This is King's son. This was over the past weekend. He's talking about his father's vision and his dream. Let's listen for a moment.</s>MARTIN LUTHER KING III, SON OF MARTIN LUTHER KING JR: We got to keep walking. We going to keep on talking. We're going to keep on voting. We're going to keep on job building. We're going to keep on educating. We're going to keep on mentoring. We're going to keep on community building. We're going to keep on ending violence. We're going to keep on creating peace. We ain't going to let nobody turn us around.</s>MALVEAUX: It's all about keeping on. Reverend Jackson, originally, that march was the march on Washington for jobs and freedom. At the time, black unemployment was twice that of white citizens. That figure still remains true today, twice --</s>JACKSON: It's greater. 50 years later, we're freer but we are less equal. 31 cities where black joblessness above 50 percent. That includes New York City. When New York Mayor Bloomberg says stop and frisk, we say stop and employ or stop and provide access to transportation. Stop and create job training skills. We must not confuse President Obama's role with that of Dr. King. Dr. King is in the Frederick Douglass line. President Obama is in the Abraham Lincoln, Roosevelt, Kennedy line. He will do quite well. What we need from him is a response to the dream. That's what you get from Lyndon Johnson's 1965 speech, speaks to how a commitment to racial justice, gender equality. We need a speech focused on legislation and appropriation.</s>MALVEAUX: How does the president do that, President Obama? How does he bring -- create the kind of environment where you have jobs for African-Americans so you don't still see the same disparity?</s>JACKSON: Well, these are abandoned urban zones. We can plan for reconstruction which will put people back to work. We need a commitment of the and emphasis on the constitutional right to vote, maybe equal rights for women, a plan for reviving the war on poverty, for urban reconstruction, a commitment to provide the integrity and visibility of the Civil Rights Commission, student loan debt forgiveness. This is bold kind of stuff that only presidents can do. President Obama is equal to the task.</s>MALVEAUX: All right. Reverend Jackson, thank you so much. Good to have you as always.</s>JACKSON: Thank you.</s>MALVEAUX: Just ahead on the NEWSROOM, housing prices are rising. That's been the case for months. We'll tell you what it means if you're thinking of buying or selling your house.