SAGINAW, MI (WNEM) -
The Reverend Jesse Jackson was in mid-Michigan in the wake of the shooting death of a homeless man.
On Friday, Jackson visited the site where Milton Hall was gunned down by a number of Saginaw police officers. Jackson later participated in a town hall meeting to discuss the current state of the investigation and case into the July 1 incident.
Jackson's visit comes just days after a 6-year-old girl was shot and killed while visiting family in Saginaw.
Earlier Friday, TV5 got the chance to speak with Jackson in a one-on-one interview about violence in our community – watch what Jackson had to say in the video above.
Jackson says he was invited to mid-Michigan by local faith leaders.
"They sense a rising tension, in this instance, it's not just the 19 who were killed this year in Saginaw, a relatively high number for such a small city, and four killed by the police"
Jackson joined local activists in calling for answers in the July 1 shooting at the hands of six Saginaw officers.
"The idea of a kind of execution squad, somebody killed in broad daylight, shot at 46 times, that's overwhelming," said Jackson.
TV5 learned Friday that Jackson is actually a close confidante of Milton Hall's mother, Jewel Hall.
"We talked several times on the phone, we've had prayer, she is grateful that ministers and the mayor and others are rallying, because if people ignored it and took it for granted, it would compound her misery," said Jackson.
He says she is not looking for revenge. "She wants justice, she wants to know who killed her son and what price they paid by putting a value on his life," said Jackson.
And for the civil rights figure, getting justice is familiar territory, but he says he can't do it alone.
"[We need] more unity - ministers across lines of race and religion must find common ground, I hope that the white ministers will be a big part of this, because if one of us is not safe, all of us are not safe," said Jackson.
Jackson's visit is also drawing protestors. Jeff Baker, a Republican candidate for the state House 95th district, organized the protest.
According to Mlive, Baker's Facebook page asks for supporters and aims to calm calls to rush the investigation. Baker says he wants outside forces to stop bullying the local justice system and let the investigation take its course.
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