Tuesday, December 8, 2015

JFK Assassination Conspiracy by Kirsten Laskoskie

       November 22nd, 1963, started off as any other day would. President Kennedy made his way to Dallas, Texas with no fear in his mind; he didn't give it a second thought. Of course, no one expects to be fatally gunned down by a mystery man (or men.) Not so much of a mystery to some, as many people believe Lee Harvey Oswald is who assassinated Kennedy. However, according to a 2003 abc news poll, seventy percent of Americans believe Kennedy’s death was the “result of a plot, not the act of a lone killer”(“One gunman or two? Soviets or the CIA? The Best JFK conspiracy theories.”). Fifty-one percent believe Oswald did not act alone, and seven percent believe Oswald was not involved at all in the assassination (1). 
      John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on May 29, 1917 (“John Fitzgerald Kennedy”). A Harvard University graduate, Kennedy was a Democrat and a Roman Catholic (“Facts about JFK”). President Kennedy was charismatic and likable, helping him to win a seat in the U.S Senate in 1952 against Henry Cabot Lodge. According to one of his aides, the decisive factor in Kennedy’s victory was his personality: “He was the new kind of political figure that people were looking for that year, dignified and gentlemanly, and well-educated and intelligent, without the air of superior condescension” (“John F Kennedy:Civil Rights Activist, U.S Representative, U.S President”).
       In 1956, President Kennedy was very nearly selected as Democratic presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson’s running mate, but was ultimately passed over for Estes Kefauver from Tennessee (1). Four years later, Kennedy decided to run for president. In 1960, Kennedy chose Senate Majority Leader Lyndon B. Johnson as his running mate and defeated Nixon by a thin margin to become the 35th president of the United States (1). Kennedy’s election was a historic one, being the second youngest American president in history (1).  President Kennedy was moving towards being an inspirational man as the president of the United States. Delivering his legendary inaugural address on January 20, 1961, Kennedy sought to inspire all Americans to more active citizenship. “Ask not what your country can do for you,” he said. “Asked what you can do for your country”(1).
       President Kennedy was a bold man that bravely faced many foreign affairs as well as international crises and had many great accomplishments in these areas during his presidency. Kennedy brought to the White House the dynamic idea of a “New Frontier” approach in dealing with problems at home, abroad, and in the dimensions of space (“Fact Monster: John Fitzgerald Kennedy”). Out of his leadership in his first few months in office came the 10-year Alliance for Progress to aid Latin America, The Peace Corps and accelerated programs that brought the first Americas into orbit in the race in space. (1). By the end of the century, over 170,000 Peace Corps volunteers would serve in 135 countries (“John F Kennedy:Civil Rights Activist, U.S Representative, U.S President”).
         The greatest crisis that Kennedy faced was the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962 (1). Discovering that the Soviet Union had sent ballistic nuclear missiles to Cuba, Kennedy Blockaded the island and vowed to defend the United States at any cost (1). After several of the tensest days in history, the Soviet Union agreed to remove the missiles in return for Kennedy’s  promise not to invade Cuba and to remove American missiles from Turkey(1). Eight months later, Kennedy successfully negotiated the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty with Great Britain and the Soviet Union, helping to ease the Cold War tensions(1). This was the Presidents proudest accomplishment and really showed his bravery in defending the United States. 
         President Kennedy was a firm believer and advocate of civil rights, something that was a continuous issue during his presidency. In september 1962, Kennedy sent his brother, Attorney General Robert Kennedy, to Mississippi to use the National Guard and federal marshals to escort and defend civil rights activist James Meridith as he became the first black student to enroll at the University of Mississippi on October 1, 1962 (1). Near the end of 1963, Kennedy finally sent a civil rights bill to Congress(1). One of the last acts of his presidency and his life, Kennedy’s bill eventually passed as the landmark Civil Rights Act in 1964 (1). 
        By 1:00Pm on November 22, 46-year old John F. Kennedy, 35th president of the United States, is announced dead, making him the fourth president killed in office (“John F. Kennedy Assassination Fast Facts”). Even decades after the assassination of president Kennedy, conspiracies theories run wild as to who was involved. In 1964, a year after the presidents death, the Presidents Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy, better known as the Warren Commission, concluded that Kennedy was killed by a single gunman, Lee Harvey Oswald, who acted alone and not part of a conspiracy (“The Top 5 John F. Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy Theories”). In 1978, however, another government committee, the House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations, found that in addition to Oswald, there likely was a second gunman who fired at the President’s motorcade (1). The commission concluded that the gunmen were part of a “conspiracy”, without determining exactly who was behind it. Was it the soviets with some assistance from Lee Harvey Oswald? Or maybe Vice President Lyndon Johnson, hoping to be swiftly sworn into presidency?  
          There are four main conspiracy theories that are linked to the assassination of John F. Kennedy. If you're looking for a more sinister reason behind Kennedy’s assassination, the soviets seem like an obvious choice. There are two pieces of evidence that point to this theory. First, the U.S and the Soviet Union were engaged in a bitter Cold War (“The Top 5 John F. Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy Theories”). Conspiracy theorists allege that Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev was so embarrassed by having to back down following the Cuban Missile Crisis he ordered the hit on Kennedy (1). Another piece of compelling evidence is Lee Harvey Oswald’s connection to the USSR. Though a former marine, Oswald had twice visited the Soviet Union with his Russian-born wife Marina (1). Both the Warren and the House Committees on Assassinations found little evidence to support a Soviet-backed operation, but one former KGB agent came out years later to say the Russians played a role in the plot (1). 
            Given our history with Cuba and Fidel Castro, it may seem likely that Castro was involved in the assassination of Kennedy. The theory goes, because of the many times that U.S agents has tried to assassinate Castro, he would repay the honor and try to assassinate Kennedy (The Top 5 John F. Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy Theories). The most famous component of this theory is a statement from the man who would succeed Kennedy, President Lyndon Johnson. “Kennedy was trying to get Castro, but Castro got him first” (1). Both the Warren Commission ad the House Committee on Assassinations cleared the Cubans of any involvement and when Castro was interviewed by Bill Moyers in 1977, he called the theory “absolute insanity” (1).
          Who would benefit the most from Kennedy’s assassination? Lyndon Johnson, the man who became president. Just 99 minutes after Kennedy’s death, Johnson was sworn into presidency (“50 facts About the JFK Assasination”). The gist of the theory is that Johnson was motivated by ambition and received help from members of the CIA and wealthy tycoons who believed they would profit more under a Johnson administration (“The Top 5 John F Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy Theories”). According to one version of the theory, Johnson was aided in the plot by another man who would become president, George H.W Bush, a burgeoning CIA official who happened to be in Dallas on the day of the assassination (1). 
         The easiest people to point the finger at, and the group that is usually present in conspiracy theories is the CIA. Its workings and agents are secret to most Americans, and the agency in the 1960s had a reputation for high-level political assassinations (“The Top 5 John F. Kennedy Assassination Conspiracy Theories”). One theory suggests that Oswald was a CIA operative and agents tampered with his FBI file before and after the investigation to make it appear he was a communist and lone wolf (1). In its 1978 report, the Housed Select Committee on Assassinations found there was no indication that Oswald “had ever had contact with the agency.” (1). 
      The most likely theory is the one that involves Lyndon B. Johnson. Johnson benefited the most from Kennedy’s assassination; he became the President of the United States. Johnson also had the means, as said above, to get away with killing the president without actually committing the crime himself. 
         Decades after that dreadful day in November, conspirators are still dreaming up what it was that really happened to president Kennedy. The most pressing question is not why, but who? Who was behind this brutal assassination? There are four main theories that are the most likely: 
 1. The soviets did it (with help from Lee Harvey Oswald
 2. The Cubans did it
 3. Lyndon Johnson did it
 4. The CIA did it
          While we may never really know what happened on that tragic day, there are plenty of books, interviews, movies and documentaries that can help you form your own opinion as to who was behind this terrible tragedy. 
Works Cited
"Interesting Facts about John F Kennedy." Findfast.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
"John Fitzgerald Kennedy." Fact Monster. Sandbox Networks, Inc., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
"John F. Kennedy Assassination Fast Facts." Cnn.com. CNN, 2 Nov. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
"John F Kennedy - Civil Rights Activist." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
Kelly, Martin. "John F. Kennedy Fast Facts." About.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.
Towner, Betsey. "50 Facts about the JFK Assassination." Aarp.org. AARp, Nov. 2013. Web. 16 Nov. 2015.

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