John F. Kennedy - Address on Civil Rights 

_And when Americans are sent to Vietnam or West Berlin, we do not ask for whites only._ Man, that line gets me every time.

See kids, this is what a leader looks like.

50 years ago today. My dad saw this when he was 6 years old in 1963. How fortunate we are to be able to watch this great speech on RU-vid all these years later.

This man was truly a different breed. He really cared about people and doing the right thing. He didn’t say what was popular, he said what was correct in his heart. There hasn’t been another one like this.

The very essence of what a United States of America president should be.

Amazing 2 days in presidential history. President Kennedy gave this speech about civil rights on June 11, 1963, one day after he gave his “Peace Speech” at American University. I doubt if any American president ever gave 2 more significant speeches on 2 different topics on back-to-back days.

This shit make me cry bruh i wonder how the country would've been if he never gave such a wonderful speech

As a young man who grew up decades after JFK, my mom often read me stories about JFK and how young he was. I often wonder what this country would have been like had he and Bobby lived.

RFK and Bobby, individuals we should all seek to emulate.

His words are true, even today as America seems to backing away from its commitments to civil rights by a Right Wing Supreme court.

Now this was a President.

Hey this was great speech sadly its an unfinished life for him before Dallas.... Powerful speech for a man facing the Southern Machine he stood up to prejudice and hate...

This is grace, education,and leadership. Will our children ever know that this is what The United States used to look like?

I look not at the surface of a man's being to understand them, but into them to see their character. As should all people, I strive to deter the temptation to judge people before they have shown their true selves. I hope that all will not only think abut this now, but whenever such situations arise.

JFK is my all time favorite President!

From this to trump. How America has fallen. Shame.

His approval rating after this speech dropped from 78% to 58% , he was very unpopular in the south in his last months

Greatest President 🇺🇸🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Freedom is as Free is as King is to Kingdom. God grant us Soviergn truth in our time of need. your Kingdom com thy will be done. Peace on earth for all mankind

Still relevant to this day

"But law alone cannot make men see right." I've been a lover of words all of my life. Even now, at age 63, I am still awed by the power in them. A president's words matter. A president's words set tone and direction. As I watch this, we are approaching the 59th anniversary of his assassination. As I read the comments, I am struck and hopeful by how these words still resonate with people of good will and good conscience, almost 60 years later. A president's words, when spoken with eloquence, passion and grace will be talked about centuries from now. This is a leadership masterclass.

He winged the last 1/3 of the speech.

JFK....you ROCKED.........HARD!!!!!

one of the best presidents of all time

What a great man.its sad how they did him dirty

A ❤Legend .....

@Deathtoo1 Why would anyone want to silence that voice? I can't fathom why anyone would want to remain in a medieval world where brother hates brother and hide their hatred behind petty differences such as skin colour or how they choose to worship God.

“100 years of delay have past, since Lincoln freed the slaves. Yet their heirs, their grandsons, are still not fully free.” Noun. heir (plural heirs) Someone who inherits, or is designated to inherit, the property of another. One who inherits, or has been designated to inherit, a hereditary title or office. A successor in a role, representing continuity with the predecessor.

And now we have Biden. So sad.. . . . There aint no Sherrif in town no maw. we need Mr Tibbs!

Right on, rsracrs19!!

🗣🎯

Za. Dziecko. ?beiby

apus

Second most overrated President after Reagan. I never understood the love for him. Sure, he was young and a good speaker, but he brought the world to the brink of WWIII, he sent the first round of combat troops into Vietnam, and had the President of South Vietnam assassinated, furthering our commitment there and had no major accomplishments. LBJ made Civil Rights a reality, Kennedy was reluctant to support it, keep in mind Civil Rights legislation was stalled the day Kennedy was shot, LBJ made not only Civil Rights, but also Voting Rights, Medicare, and Medicaid a reality and gets very little to no credit.

gay people deserve rights but same sex marriage should not be legalized

Reminds me of the LGBT rights we struggle with today

bs propoganda

for a white man to do this back in those days, as powerful as he was, now that's a true president. he died a legend

A true leader! It's a damn shame what happened...

He was one of my favorite president of the United States. He actually supported the civil rights activists and believed that no matter what race, gender, or age everyone deserved to be treated equal.

Kennedy valued all ,men and women the same. he was a man of true principle and character, for him to say these things in 1960 he is truly one of the greatest presidents we have ever had. his legacy will forever be known.

I love John F Kennedy, he is the greatest president in my opinion. The assassination clip makes me so sad whenever I used to see it. ~Rest In Peace JFK.~

Beautiful and heartbreaking. "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."

How I wish this great man is with us today. We need a leader like him.

What a loss. RIP John F Kennedy. Where is this inspired leadership today ? How can such a fine man make such wicked enemies ? JFK was not perfect, he was no saint but he was a champion of the people & he tried his best for his country. He done some very good things and with his mistakes did learn from them and tried to correct them. He did not deserve such a brutal and tragic fate.

JFK and Abraham Lincoln were in my opinion the best US Presidents of all time because they stood up for all Americans no matter what color.

The 1960's were so full of violence!!! In 1963 we lost John F. Kennedy, and Medgar Evers. In 1965 Malcom X, and 3 years later Martin Luther king Jr, and Robert Kennedy!! Our country has never recovered from the loss of these above-mentioned men!!!!!!

This is why black people loved JFK...he spoke the truth

We need him now! Forget the talk about his faults! He was a great leader period. I don't care if you rebuff my statement!

He told the people the truth, in the most sensible, factual, morally undeniable manner possible. He was a truly great President. He addressed in few words, the large issue of our racial sickness. He PERSUADED others. He brought real change. Thank you, JFK for calling bullshit on all our boasts of being so free! You made us what we said we were! You gave this beautiful speech to all our people, then you worked to pass the Civil Rights Act, which probably passed because you died for the cause.

the last president with real charisma

As a African American I respect this man so much. He died with dignity

Magnificent! I was in high school and remember this. He would be promoting the rights of all people today if he were still alive as an elder statesman.

JFK and his brother RFK were brilliant leaders. Ahead of their time.

Such a good man and he almost did so much more for us

It is one of the best political speech I’ve ever heard, it can been heard by all of us who have a heart, who have a soul regardless of our culture or citizenship and we can all agree about it. Thanks JKF god bless u

More than 50 years and this speech still resonates. It would generate hate today.

To all of humanity...We didn't choose our parents...We didn't choose how we look...We didn't choose when were born..We didn't choose where were born...and we don't choose when we leave. knowing this is true for every soul on earth..enjoy every moment you have.. because we don't choose how many moment's we receive..share the positive freely with all..and refuse to let anything or anyone take it away..sincerely, someone who still believes in humanity.

His brother Bobby Kennedy wrote this.. JFK put his heart into it and when the speech ended on his paper towards the end he improvised his own words.

This man surely was ahead of his time. He was surely a LEGEND. Shame for him to be taken from us so early.

He was the greatest president who ever lived

That's my president, the best of all of them all , so honest and sincere rest in power king

We so need more men like Kennedy. He was one of the greatest Presidents!

I will miss you John F. Kennedy

I aspire so much to be like this great man as should every true American. JFK at the end of the day was not a Democrat or a Republican, he wasn’t left or right. He was just and fair but most importantly he was American.

The president of the United States at that time said racism was all across America . But some whites would say otherwise.......

I'm reminded of slightly (only slightly) less eloquent Irishman: "I believe in strong military and helping those below you, and if you’re balancing the budget and doing a good job as President you should be able to sleep with whoever you want. That’s the Jack Kennedy approach to Democracy.” - Dennis Leary.

What's really perplexing is that as I write this, 2 people have actually voted this speech thumbs down. Huh?

He speaks from his soul

Only an Irish man could do this

We so need men like Kennedy today.

black and white unite

Man, if he were alive today, he'd be in his mid 90's. Truly a great leader and a great man. So sad that the great ones upon us are always taken the earliest.

That wicked Boston accent. RIP JFK, the man who could've saved the country.

Much like Lincoln, among the many coincidences between the two, he didn’t enter the office with the civil rights movement at the forefront of his campaign. However, once the problem of civil rights revealed itself to him, he, his brother, and his policy rose to meet the challenge of inequality. 100 years apart from each other, they became champions of equal freedom during two of the most explosive periods in American history.

i just love it when he says "color"... it sounds like "colah"

God Bless John Kennedy

this why they took him out 😩

This was a bold step taken by him. Thanks for posting!

RIP USA.

Why is it that people who are doing good for this world and trying to make a difference, are the ones who die way to soon and or killed? Seems like a trend if you ask me. Think about it many of the world's greatest leader and people on a platform that allows them to be able to inspire millions, are the ones getting thrown in jail, killed, etc. It is not fair and it is just a very cruel world that we live in.

An imperfect man seeking a more perfect union. I was 10yo when he died. It was a difficult day. John Kennedy was the best speaker of that time. And he remains so to this day.

Rest In Peace

❤vote for Robert F Kennedy🤍Jr President💙2024 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

My grandma had a big picture of him, in our family room. I never understood why she had a huge pic of a white man in our home LOL. 47 years later, I get it 😊

there will never actually be another president, N E V E R who sees the difference and rhe issues directly in society

powerful

Candace Owens should watch this.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE KKK AND THE FOUNDING FATHERS? I THINK-WHOEVER WAS RACIST OR SEGREGATIONIST FIRST SHOULD BE THE ONE CARRYING THE BURDEN AND CROSS OF GUILTY- MOBUTO

What if he was killed because of this speech and his views on civil rights? Omg

As a Nation, we have not moved forward.

so much truth in his words

Wanna know what's funny I asked who would you want to be your president to blacks they said Obama and I asked some whites they said Kennedy Black kids/teens these days should be educated on Kennedy

Have lots n Lots of Respect for this Man!He was a real president!And a kind of leader we need now!But the harsh reality is such man are hard to born, if born they have to be the victim of evi, just for being good

11/6/2020 still talking on the same topics. Sad ☹️

4:08 Gives me chills how great he presented what type of issue it wasn’t -then BOOM gives the mic-drop-worthy issue it is. #35

God, I wish we had a president like this man today..

A youtube clickbait video where an African American woman trounced the democratic party as not being about social justice brought me here. She was right that the democratic party was originally full of southerners and racists, but much of that changed in the 1930-40s and brought us Kennedy in the 60s. The KKK may have been founded by southern democrats but find me a KKK member today that votes democrat.

A proud day for American and Freedom

"Law alone cannot make men see right"