Bobby Kennedy. Were you aware then, or not, and do you cry at the sound or thought of his voice?

[ConsAreLiars]

Poll question: Bobby Kennedy. Were you aware then, or not, and do you cry at the sound or thought of his voice?

I do. For me, he was the last best hope for the people of America and the world. The last. At the time I didn't cry, just became more determined to do whatever little I might. But since I have seen what has been lost, and the truly evil nature of the dominant powers that came after that last best hope, I tear up at the mere recollection of the hope or the possibilities his campaign he embodied.

But most here at DU only know him as a historical figure, one name, albeit a respected one, among many.

If you haven't head him, or even if you have, there are several here: http://www.angelfire.com/pa4/kennedy/speech.html#

For a short one, try the speech he gave in Indianapolis after learning of King's murder on his flight to a rally in a predominately black area of that city. Advised to skip the event, he insisted and gave this speech, complete with obscure reference to Greek mythology. Indianapolis was one of few large cities that did not go up in flames. Hit the "Death Of Martin Luther King" link for that one.

And Listen to the "On Vietnam War" if you want to hear the moral truth about Iraq:
The text is rather poorly and incompletely transcribed, but the point is clear enough:

Do we have the right here in the United States to say we are going to kill tens of thousands of people, make millions of people as we have refuges, kill women and children as we have.

There is thirty-five thousand people without limbs in South Vietnam.one-hundred and fifty thousand civilian casulties every year. Thousands of children are killed because of our efforts.

Do we have that right, here in the United States to perform these acts, because we want to protect ourselves so it is not a greater problem for us in the United States.

I very seriously question wheter we have that right. And I think other people are fighting it, other people are carring the burden. But this is also our war. Those of us who stay here in the United States. We must feel it when we use Napalm or a villiage is destroyed and civilians are killed.

For a longer speech in South Africa (when Mandela was, according to official US policy a terrorist and a commie -- he's now included on the US terrorist watch list) on racism and imperialism, try the audio or video at: http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/rfkcapetown.htm

More audio on that site also.

[newmajority]

1. I wasn't even 2 years old when Dr. King and Bobby were murdered

and obviously not around for JFK at all. But I get it. I know what was lost when they were taken from us. Sometimes I really think I was born a generation too late. I was alive for part of the 60's but too young to appreciate it. Sucks when Nixon is the first President you can actually remember :(

[Justitia]

2. My husband lived just outside Indy the night of that speech. He said RFK saved them that night.

He said those words, to his family, felt like the calm that settles on Christmas Eve.
They knew everything would be alright.

And then, it wasn't.

[L. Coyote]

3. OTHER. I was asked to work on his campaign staff, after having organized

some Youth for Kennedy groups.

That night we knew we had won both the primary and the presidency. We had talked to National HQ, and the mood was celebratory, the last real hurdle had been scaled, and fair sailing to the White House awaited us. I expected to be working for the President. It was a joyous night as I drove home, right after the speech.

My radio alarm was set to 7 am, and was set very loud. I awoke to, "Senator Kennedy is dead." Democracy died, in many ways, that day too.

[BlueIris]

4. I wasn't born until '79. Listening to most significant speeches by JFK or RFK can make me cry.

Like a little girl.

[dhill926]

5. horrible night....

got into a few tussles the next day...went to school with reactionary dipshits.

[MADem]

6. I am old enough to remember him BEFORE he developed a social conscience.

Back when he got the AG nepotism rule changed!

RFK certainly evolved as a person and as a public figure. It was quite a process to behold.

[asteroid2003QQ47]

7. He was no JFK. n/t

[MADem]

16. Not back then. Eventually, he surpassed him in the 'social justice' arena.

He might have been The One had he not been murdered.

[asteroid2003QQ47]

21. Both Jack and Bobby had...

their good points/bad points depending on the viewer.
Were either one of them headed for the White House right now
I would see reason for hope.
As I saw them, Bobby never had Jack's savoir faire,
for what that's worth.

[Rageneau]

8. I was awake and watching TV the night he was shot. Saw the commotion begin.

Those passionate, painful 60s. VietNam, Chicago, MLK, RFK, the Beatles, the Manson Family. Zoom, zoom, zoom.

But the worst night of the decade was the night -- the next night-- when Bobby died.

I've never gotten over it, and I don't thing the country has, either.

[kiranon]

20. Same here - watching tv and the sadness never left even today

I worked for the Robert Kennedy campaign going door to door in Oakland. When he died, it broke my heart. I didn't work on another campaign for years after that. Those were hard times.

[deutsey]

9. Bobby Kennedy's funeral is one of my earliest memories

I was three. I remember seeing the flag-draped coffin on TV and the funeral mass.

:evilfrown:

[H2O Man]

10. Other.

Here is my tie clip from RFK when he was running for Senator. He came to Norwich, NY, and gave a speech on the courthouse steps.



Six years earlier, one of my cousins ran the JFK campaign headquarters in Norwich. He got the only 5 traffic tickets that he ever was issued in over 50 years of driving, in a one-month period in Norwich. The police kept telling him they didn't want "his type" causing trouble in Norwich. Today, inside that courthouse, the judge, DA, and public defender are all Irish-Americans.

[TexasObserver]

11. I still can't hear Teddy's eulogy without tearing up.

You know the part I'm talking about.

[Terri S]

12. For everyone too young to remember

link

[TexasObserver]

13. I didn't hear it until much later.

I was in the military and there was no contact with any media at the time. I heard about it the day after it happened, but didn't really have any news until I read a TIME magazine the next month. I probably didn't see the TV until six months later.

I wasn't even a big RFK fan at that time. I didn't know enough to know what he stood for and why he died. When you're 18 and in the military, you're outside the realm of normal knowledge. But as time passed, I began to see the world from beyond the military.

[SeattleGirl]

26. I just listened to that again last night.

Breaks my heart every time.

I am old enough to remember JFK, MLK, and RFK, and to know the impact their deaths had on many of us.

[alfredo]

14. Hours before I heard of his death, I had survived an attempt on my life.

So the anniversary of his assassination is trauma compounded.

[defendandprotect]

15. Bobby became a trusted and loved leader . . .

we shared the shock, trauma, sadness, sense of loss of JFK with him ---
as well as questions about political violence in America.

We shared his concerns for America and her people and for peace ---

For many of us our first and last concern is that those who have brought us this political
violence would be brought to accountability --- not for punishment's sake, but so that we
could understand what had truly happened -- who these people are and what they are made of.
And how we could prevent their destructive natures from harming us futher ---

As it turns out, it is too late for all of it --
for our species --
for our planet ---

The morning I heard the news of RFK's assassination, my heart near stopped ---
and inwardly I still cry ---

And I still wonder at the power of violence by the few to destroy so much ---

[sallyseven]

17. When I hear his voice I cry even today.

What has made it bearable is Ted. If he goes then I have nothing left.

[Blue_In_AK]

18. I was shocked and dismayed

but I actually feel a lot sadder when I ponder Martin Luther King's assassination. I preferred Eugene McCarthy as a candidate. That said, I think losing Bobby Kennedy was a huge blow to the nation. Perhaps I was just kind of shell-shocked by the time June 1968 rolled around. It seemed assassinations had become so commonplace.

[ConsAreLiars]

25. I too supported McCarthy, until Kennedy became an option.

At the time I felt McCarthy was certain to lose, even though he was right on all the issues, because he was totally unable to connect with working class America and and more particularly Black America. Robert Kennedy had the family reputation to connect with working class America (not one of us but for us), but the key thing, for me, that made his candidacy not only winnable but transformative was his dedication and sensitivity regarding racism as well as imperialism. That's the reason I highlighted those two speeches in particular.

[Ichingcarpenter]

19. It reminds me of "what might have been" and Teddy's Eulogy

Which also brings tears to my eyes.

[ConsAreLiars]

24. Video of that moving speech at this youtube link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p9JTYnMpRyg

[uppityperson]

22. I don't remember hearing but,do remember calling home and crying when he was murdered.

"why are they killing all the good guys" is a tough question to get from a teenager when you are mourning yourself.

[ConsAreLiars]

23. Thanks to all who voted and replied.

I knew most here see him as I did, yet some saw him and his campaign as unimportant or even "just another politician." I wondered if you "had to be there" to share my view, but it seems clear that although that may be a factor in how familiar one is with him and his message, it has little to do with one's evaluation of or reaction to his voice and message. Thanks again.