Jackson was scheduled to go on a world tour, beginning in London, but millions of fans were disappointed to find out that their idol had died. Jackson’s death sparked controversy not only within the Jackson family, but through 12 of his fans who committed suicide, and hundreds of his closest friends, especially civil rights activist, Dick Gregory.
Gregory has known the Jackson family for years, and although Jackson’s death came as a surprise to the world, he said that he was not shocked and that he knew the end was near for Michael.
“I flew up to see Michael a few years ago during his child molestation trial and he was not well,” Gregory remembers. “I could sense that he was ill, and I tried to take him to the hospital. I asked him what was wrong. He said, ‘“They’re trying to kill me…please don’t leave me.”’ I said, ‘Who Michael, who?’ He just said, ‘They...Them.’ I knew he meant someone close to him or around him.” Gregory said he could remember that experience like it was yesterday. “I may be 76, but I don’t forget, and something as chilling as this stayed on my mind for months. I knew this was serious."
Civil Rights Activist Dick Gregory
Gregory described Jackson’s facial expressions and the look in his eyes. “I said, ‘Michael, when is the last time you ate?’ He told me, ‘I can’t eat. I’m too afraid. They’re trying to kill me.’ I told Michael that I would take him to the hospital. We drove maybe an hour away, to an exclusive hospital where no one expected or even knew we were coming. After the doctor evaluated Michael, he said Michael was severely dehydrated, and if he had waited an hour longer to come into the ER, he would have died. I thought the trial had taken a serious toll on his body, physically and mentally, but it was deeper than that.”
After Jackson’s elaborate funeral and memorial service, Latoya Jackson told the Daily Mail, a British tabloid, that she believed her brother was murdered and not just by one person but a “conspiracy of people.” She denied the rumors that Jackson was drug shopping, searching and begging doctors to find the drug that is said to have killed Michael. Latoya claimed that her brother was “pure and clean” and that it didn’t make sense that drugs were found in his system.
It is said that Michael Jackson died of cardiac arrest after a drug overdose on Propofol, also known as Diprivan, a drug used as a general anesthetic during surgical procedures. Investigators believe Jackson’s in-home doctor, Conrad Murphy, is a person of interest and have began searching and confiscating the doctors’ belongings as they relate to the case. It has taken months for the autopsy to return to the family and, at the time of press, the exact cause of death is still unknown.
“It’s horrible, what happened to Michael…he was a great person,” Gregory said. “You know you always have that thought, ‘Could I have done something or said something to prevent what happened,’ but living in what ifs and should have, could haves, it’s not the way life was meant to be lived.”
Gregory has started a fast for 40 days and 40 nights. He says he will fast until Jackson can finally rest in peace. He will fast until the exact cause of death is known and the truth is released. Jackson’s death has fueled nasty rumors, caused his music to reach number one on the charts again, and brought on a child custody battle between his mother, Catherine and ex-wife, Debbie Rowe. (Custody has since been awarded to Catherine Jackson.) It has also caused quite a stir with his personal assets and estate.
“My brother was worth more dead than he was alive,” Latoya Jackson told CNN. Michael was a gift to the world, and his sister claims that she will not rest until the truth about his death surfaces.
