Rev. Jesse Jackson visits Oklahoma City church

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- The Reverend Jesse Jackson visits Oklahoma City and urges Oklahomans to turn their focus to the problems of poverty, joblessness and inequality.<br/><br/>The pain of the 1995 bombing

Monday, April 18th 2005, 5:48 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- The Reverend Jesse Jackson visits Oklahoma City and urges Oklahomans to turn their focus to the problems of poverty, joblessness and inequality.

The pain of the 1995 bombing of the Alfred -P- Murrah Federal Building still burns deeply, the civil rights leader said in a fiery sermon Sunday at St. John Missionary Baptist Church.

Jackson says Oklahoma is struggling with poverty, unemployment and a disproportionate number of blacks in the state's prison system.

He also chastised Oklahoma colleges and universities for failing to educate many of their black athletes. He said using athletes to fill up stadiums and make millions of dollars for universities is a form of violence.

Jackson said he accepted the invitation to preach at St. John in part because he is working with the church's pastor to organize an Oklahoma chapter of his Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. The group is a multiracial, multi-issue organization devoted to progressive causes.