John F.

Kennedy A biography The second son of nine children, John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on May 29, 1917. His family has already established their legacy in politics and public service at that time. Joseph P. Kennedy, his father, was a multimillionaire business executive and financier at a bank. He was also involved in film industry and stock market. Among his long line of achievements include services as chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and of the U.S. Maritime Commission. He also served as the ambassador to the Great Britain. His wife, Rose, was a daughter of a former State Legislator and one time Boston mayor. During his childhood, Kennedy attended several schools because his family had to move to different locations. Although he spent summers in his hometown in Massachusetts, he stays with his family at their home in Florida. During the latter years of grade school, he attended the Canterbury parochial school and Choate school, both in Connecticut. He was already on the twelfth grade that time. The young Kennedy was considered competitive and was admired by many for his good personality and achievements. However, he was often sick which requires hospitalization during those years. He graduated from Chiate in June 1935. Soon, Kennedy traveled to London with his parents and sister with the hopes of entering London School of Economics where his brother had graduated. Not long enough, they went back to America and he enrolled at Princeton University. Unfortunately, Kennedy suffered another illness which forced him to withdraw from school. With his inability to attend classes, Kennedy stayed home reading books. He also worked at a ranch in Arizona and did several outdoor activities. Finally, Kennedy recovered and was able to return to school. This time, he enrolled at Harvard University. While studying, he had the chance to travel with his father to Great Britain where he worked as his fathers secretary. Kennedys experience touring around Europe inspired him to write his senior thesis which talks about Great Britains military struggles. Eventually, this work was published and became a best-selling book. Kennedy soon earned his degree in International affairs as he graduated cum laude from Harvard. He then pursued graduate studies at Stanford Graduate School of Business. Kennedy tried for the Army but was disqualified due to medical reasons. Later on, he joined the U.S. Navy in which his father had great connections with. He earned the rank of lieutenant and was assigned to command a patrol torpedo boat. A tragic incident almost took Kennedys life when their boat was critically hit by a Japanese destroyer while they where patrolling an area in Solomon Islands. Along with six other crew, Kennedy survived by hanging on to the remaining portion of their boat. All of them were wounded but was able to swim to the nearest island. All his men were rescued and Kennedy received a military honor for his bravery and great leadership. As the Kennedys political legacy was about to be passed to its successor and Johns older brother, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., the latter was killed in a military operation. The death of his brother leads to Johns desire to pursue career in politics despite the injuries he suffered during the war and all other illness that troubled him since childhood.

His family was in full support and expected him to succeed in political race. They gathered supporters from the military and college friends. They also conducted several social events to raise money for his campaigns. In 1946, he ran for the position of the U.S House of Representatives from the Massachusetts eleventh Congressional district as part of the Democratic Party and eventually won the race in a large margin against his Republican opponent. Kennedy was successful in his three terms in Congress which he never lost. His programs were focused on strengthening the labor force such as setting higher wages and providing good working conditions. He also supported several projects of then president, Harry Truman. In 1952, after a long service in the House of Representatives, Kennedy became more ambitious and decided run for Senate in which he outlasted Republican Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. by about seventy thousand votes. The following year, Kennedy married Jacqueline Lee Bouvier, a woman hailed from a socially prominent family. During his tenure in the Senate, Kennedy continued to provide programs that enhance labor force and foreign relations. He served in several committees that work on Labormanagement Relations. As part of the Foreign Relations Committee, he advocated support for emerging nations in Africa and Asia. He was able to pass numerous bills in helping Massachusetts fishing and textile industries. He also worked on the improvement of New Englands economy. During the 1956 Democratic National Convention, Kennedy was nominated as vice president for presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson but eventually lost to Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee. In 1960, Kennedy formally announced his candidacy for president. He won the Democratic primary election and became its Presidential nominee. He chose Lyndon B. Johnson as his running mate. Part of his campaign was to prove that a Roman Catholic could be sworn into Presidential office. He visited states where people disliked his religion in which he emerged victorious by winning their hearts. His religion served as a huge obstacle in his race to presidency. In responding to this controversy, Kennedy delivered a speech during one of his campaign which addresses the absolute separation of church and state. He believed that each of these bodies is not to intervene to anothers affair nor influence its decision. Kennedy also attended series of debates against his opponent Nixon which was televised. This caused Kennedys intention and influences to reach millions at home. His strong personality and dedication outperformed his opponent. His popularity continued to grow as his efforts were doubled to stand strong amidst controversy. It was a very tight presidential race between Kennedy and Nixon. Kennedys style in his candidacy emerged as the favorite by the Americans. He was adored for his wit and his familys public influence. Soon, he defeated Republican candidate, Vice President Richard M. Nixon with just a narrow margin. Finally, On January 20, 1961, John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35 th President of the United States. He became the youngest man and the first Roman Catholic in American history to win the presidency. During his inaugural address, he delivered a speech that resounded all over the American states. His speech was remembered in the lines Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country. He called for a country united by common desire to fight and eliminate its enemies,

terror, poverty, disease, and war itself. Despite his excellent aspiration for the country, Kennedys presidential tenure was bombarded with controversies. He had to face severe crisis in his short stint as president. One of his most significant contributions was his effort to finally end racial discrimination among the white people and the black people. The barrier that segregates these two groups of people has soon disappeared. Kennedy put sheer dedication to protect civil rights and create equality among the citizens of the country. The issues involving racial segregation among public schools were properly addressed and resolved. Kennedy backed the racial integration and civil rights. It allows any race to be secured in their places. His fight against racial discrimination leads to the release of Martin Luther King, Jr. from jail and in return, more black people gave their support to Kennedys administration. On the contrary, some conservatives from Southern Democrats, mostly white people, disapproved this movement creating gaps which made it difficult to pass more civil rights bills in Congress. Another controversy called Bay of Pigs invasion challenged Kennedys administration. It is considered as one of the greatest challenges that President Kennedy had to face. There were disputes against Soviet Union but was later on resolved and the invasion on Cuba failed after Kennedy discovered their plan. His leadership and ability to conquer disaster was again proven after he peacefully overcomes this threat. Since it was also a time of the dominance of Communism in Soviet Union, Kennedy also made an initiative to improve American-Soviet relations. In terms of administering foreign relations, Kennedy also made remarkable contributions in addressing the issues surrounding Americas relation with other countries. His ideological view on a world of diversity received high praises in the third world. His diplomatic approach to other nation drew attention of many people and was adored for it is not often seen in his predecessors. Among the priorities of Kennedy administration was to settle disputes among foreign lands by resolving issues of war and bring peace. He was very considerate in strengthening foreign policies more than domestic policies. Kennedy also addressed the problem of miscalculation as a source of conflicts against other nation especially the Soviet Union for he had witnessed it in time of nuclear war. He worked hard on developing foreign policy without depending on another person. In fact, Kennedy did not appoint a secretary of state. Instead, he performed all the duties by himself to make sure everything he intended to do will not be highly influenced by other. He also succeeds in creating the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 which aims to overhaul the American immigration policy. This program was created as an extension for civil rights policies and will abolish selection of immigrants based on country of origin. Kennedys administration also focused on improving economic stability. Although the start of his presidency saw a crisis over the budget, Kennedy was able to lead a significant change in terms of economic growth. The nation was then suffering from recession but Kennedy insisted that there is hope in recovery through sacrifice to enjoy economic expansion. Due to some disputes with the United States Steel Corporation, Kennedy refocused his attention to cutting tax which favored private

investments. He approved a program of $11.1 billion in tax cuts for both corporations and individuals. Through Kennedys determination and with the help of his professional economic advisers, America saw success in bolstering economic growth. Kennedy also made major contributions in enhancing domestic programs. He established the Peace Corps which encouraged Americans to volunteer themselves in helping the underdeveloped nations. The program includes development in education, healthcare, farming, and construction. Throughout the year, a momentous number of volunteers joined the program which serves 139 countries. Another ambitious program famed by Kennedy was the New Frontier program which aims to set enough funding for education, medical care for the elderly, economic aid to rural regions, and the governments fight against recession. In its aim to develop space program, the Kennedy administration proposed an international cooperation in space with the Soviet Union. It aims to create a joint venture in space exploration. However, the Soviet Union was already advance in terms of space technology compared to America. Due to this, Kennedy became eager to compete against Soviet Unions space accomplishments. He announced his vision of landing a man on the moon which eventually leads to more improvement in American space technology. Kennedy asked Congress to approve more than $w5 billion for the success of the Apollo program. Despite Kennedys short stint in the office, he made significant change in the growth of American nation. His approach in resolving foreign conflicts and economic perspective was a product of his passion and interest for politics. In his latter days in the office, Kennedy has already received several threats for his life. He courageously faced this fear and addressed the nation how it should stand up in times of fear. On November 22, 1963, president Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas, at 12:30 pm. It was the same day where he was about to meet with Democratic Party liberals in whom he had disputes. A rifle equipped with a telescopic lens was used to kill Kennedy. The bullet hit his upper back and another shot went through his head. At 1:00 pm, the president was declared dead. He was only 46 years old at that time and was considered the youngest president to die and was the fourth president assassinated while in the office. The police found the suspect Lee Harvey Oswald, and was immediately taken into custody for investigation. He denied the allegation of murder and was set for trial. Before the scheduled trial, Oswald was killed by Jack Ruby who was arrested and jailed. A committee was set to investigate the assassination and it concludes by proving that Oswald was the only assassin and had no other connections. Kennedys funeral was witnessed by millions of people around the globe and mourned by people from different cultures. Despite his untimely death, John F. Kennedys legacy will live forever and his accomplishments will be remembered. His optimistic approach to a nation struggling under recession was remarkable and brings glory to his name.