France, Feb. 17 -- "The values promoted by Reverend Jackson are universal and are those of the Republic," read the statement from the Elysee Palace on the occasion of Jackson receiving the honour, on 19 July, 2021.

It added that Jackson had inspired generations of activists and leaders around the world with his message rejecting "all forms of racism and exclusion".

President Emmanuel Macron told Jackson:"From your earliest years, you were hungry for knowledge and justice, and you are a special friend of France, a brother for us."

Jesse Jackson to be awarded France's Legion of Honour Political bids

Born Jesse Louis Burns on 8 October, 1941, in Greenville, South Carolina, to an unwed teenaged mother and a former professional boxer, he l...