Jesse Jackson speaks to SC high school students - WCIV-TV | ABC News 4 - Charleston News, Sports, Weather

Jesse Jackson speaks to SC high school students

GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) -- The Rev. Jesse Jackson has told a group of Greenville high-school students they must learn and work together despite their differences if they want to change their lives.

The civil rights leader and Greenville native spoke Monday at Southside High School on the eve of the 150th anniversary of the first shots of the Civil War.

In a telephone interview after his speech, Jackson said he told students that the states' rights mentality that propelled the country into Civil War is still at work in the United States. He says some governors are pushing for state control over labor and other issues often handled by the federal government.

Jackson said he also told students about their personal responsibility to stay away from drugs.