Mother wants Jackson to be father to their child

Rev.Jesse Jackson

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- A former aide to the Rev. Jesse Jackson who bore his child out-of-wedlock said Friday she is "not a political stalker" trying to bash him publicly. She just wants the prominent civil rights leader to be a father to their 2-year-old daughter.

"I respect him as a man, I respect the work he's done and I respect him as my child's father," said Karin Stanford, who called in to speak on CNN's "Talk Back Live." "I respect him as a friend. I just think we're going through a difficult time."

Stanford's comments came on the same day that ABC's "20/20" was preparing to air an interview in which she said her relationship with Jackson has been strained since she took him to court last year to formalize child support arrangements.

"There is no formal child support agreement. That's why we're in court," Stanford told CNN. "I can't get anything in writing that makes sense. ...

"Every time something was put on the table it was attached to a confidentiality agreement, which I refused to sign. I don't ever want to be in a position of not being able to defend myself or my daughter."

In her ABC interview, Stanford said Jackson visited their daughter, Ashley, frequently during the first year of her life but has seen her only once in the past seven months.

"I don't understand it. It makes absolutely no sense to me," she said on "Talk Back Live." "I've talked to him about it over and over and over again. His comments are that, 'Well, once we get through this rough period, I'll see her.' I can't not see her. I have to take responsibility for her. ... I can't just walk away, so he shouldn't either. We're both responsible for this baby."

"I just want him to be her father. I just want him to do what fathers do with their children," she said.

Stanford, 39, is the former head of the Washington office of Jackson's Rainbow/PUSH Coalition. She said she discovered she was pregnant as Jackson was considering a 2000 presidential bid. The news contributed to his decision not to run.

"I think that was one of the concerns. I don't think that was the only concern," she said.

Jackson has been married since 1963 to his wife, Jacqueline, and has five children with her. Contacted by CNN to respond to the comments Stanford made in her ABC interview, he refused, saying he has provided financially for his daughter and that she deserves "dignity and privacy."

In her CNN interview, Stanford bristled at criticism of her decision to let ABC air footage of her daughter.

"I'm very proud of my daughter. I don't feel like she has to be hidden from the public," she said.