What America Might Be like Without the Kennedys

Of all the effects the Kennedy's have had on shaping the body of this nation, among the most profound, and perhaps the most visible is civil rights.

Millions of us work along side women, blacks, hispanics, and people of different religions and ethnic groups on a daily basis. This diversity, particularly in the workplace, can be traced back to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the movement that followed.

"The Civil Rights Movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. It was accompanied by much civil unrest and popular rebellion."

Students of history, and those who lived through the tumultuous decade of the 1960's, saw evidence of the rebellion that fueled this movement. Our cities burned like erupting volcanoes as violence spewed into streets filled with rioters. Television images seen in living rooms across America, displayed scenes of our urban skies set aglow against the backdrop of the dark nights of civil unrest.

The Kennedy's had strong beliefs that all Americans had the right to equal treatment under the laws of our Constitution and Bill of Rights, and added their voices and political muscle to promoting the cause.

On June 11, 1963, President John F. Kennedy delivered the address that transformed civil rights from a legal issue to a moral one. In that speech, he proposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

President Kennedy said, "The heart of the question is whether all Americans are to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities, whether we are going to treat our fellow Americans as we want to be treated. If an American, because his skin is dark, cannot eat lunch in a restaurant open to the public, if he cannot send his children to the best public school available, if he cannot vote for the public officials who will represent him, if, in short, he cannot enjoy the full and free life which all of us want, then who among us would be content to have the color of his skin changed and stand in his place? Who among us would then be content with the counsels of patience and delay?"

In the statement above, the President had been referring to the "Jim Crow" laws.

Originally enacted in 1876, the Jim Crow laws were created to address the issue of blacks in society after slavery had been abolished. The laws mandated "separate but equal" treatment for black Americans in public places. It also denied them the right to vote, as well as the right to equal opportunity for education.

On July 2, 1964, just 8 months after the assignation of President John Kennedy, the Civil Rights Act was signed into law by his successor, President Lyndon B. Johnson. The landmark legislation outlawed racial segregation in schools, public places, and employment. It also included protection for women and created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. More importantly, it brought an end to the power of the "Jim Crow laws."

Since then, the contribution black Americans have made to this country can not be understated.

Without the Civil Right Act of 1964, General Colin Powell might not have been able to achieve a position that would enable him contribute his expertise in advising more than one sitting US President, on how best to make war and how best to make peace. Countless entertainers have also added their artistic voice to American culture, marking our history, as well as shaping our future. Sidney Pottier, James Earl Jones, Denzel Washington, Halley Berry, Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Sammy Davis Jr., are just a few.

And history was made in January 2009, when Barrack Obama took the Oath of Office as President of the most powerful nation on earth. The first black man ever to do so.

Without the Civil Rights Act of 1964, this would be a very different country indeed.

The message of Dr. Martin Luther King is as important today as it was in the 1960's. Brotherhood, peaceful protest, fairness and equality for all, are the timeless goals of every thriving society.

In 1963, President Kennedy said,"We face, therefore, a moral crisis as a country and a people. It cannot be met by repressive police action. It cannot be left to increased demonstrations in the streets. It cannot be quieted by token moves or talk. It is a time to act in the Congress, in your State and local legislative body and, above all, in all of our daily lives. It is not enough to pin the blame on others, to say this a problem of one section of the country or another, or deplore the facts that we face. A great change is at hand, and our task, our obligation, is to make that revolution, that change, peaceful and constructive for all. Those who do nothing are inviting shame, as well as violence. Those who act boldly are recognizing right, as well as reality."

Two of the Kennedy brothers gave their lives while fighting toward the goal of changing America. One had the opportunity to go on to shape our future through the US Senate for nearly five decades.

What this country might be like if all three Kennedy brothers had the opportunity to serve America for the span of a full lifetime - we will never know. Still, they all left their indelible mark on our history.