FERGUSON • During a stop for lunch Monday at the Ferguson McDonald's where a window was smashed last night, Jesse Jackson Sr. said he's working with local clergy to start a door-to-door voter registration drive.
Jackson stopped by the McDonald's on West Florissant Avenue around 1 p.m. Boards still covered a large window at the restaurant that was shattered Sunday night.
Despite the damage, the McDonald's was packed with customers, and few seats were unoccupied at midday. Many customers stopped to snap photos of Jackson with their cellphones while he ate at a seat in the middle of the restaurant.
Jackson said he was meeting with clergy in St. Louis Monday to start a voter registration drive.
"It has to change," Jackson said about the lack of minorities on Ferguson's police department and local governance.
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"Five thousand new voters will transform the city from top to bottom," he said.
Jackson said he's encouraged by the meetings he's had with some clergy and elected officials about peace retuning to Ferguson.
"Blacks and whites must co-exist," he said. "There are some good coalition partners here, black and white," he said. "The groundwork is here for a solution to exist."
Lisa Brown is a business reporter at the Post-Dispatch. Follow her on Twitter @LisaBrownSTL and the Business section @postdispatchbiz.