The Reverend Jesse Jackson, a famed civil rights leader and two-time presidential candidate, and his wife, Jacqueline, were hospitalised after testing positive for COVID-19.
Reverend Jackson, 79, is vaccinated against the virus and received his first dose in January during a publicised event as he urged others to receive the inoculation as soon as possible.
He and his wife, 77, are being treated at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.
“Doctors are currently monitoring the condition of both,” according to the statement from his nonprofit, the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition.
“There are no further updates at this time,” the statement said.
“We will provide updates as they become available.”
A protégé of the Reverend Martin Luther King, Reverend Jesse Jackson was key in guiding the modern civil rights movement on numerous issues, including voting rights.
Despite having been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, Reverend Jackson has remained active and has advocated for COVID-19 vaccines for black people, who lag behind white people in the United States’ vaccination drive.
Earlier this month, he was arrested outside the US Capitol during a demonstration calling for Congress to end the filibuster in order to support voting rights.