On the fateful day of November 22, 1963, in Dallas,
Texas, the United States of America lost its President John F. Kennedy. As
Kennedy rode through Dallas in a convertible with his wife, he was shot by a
sniper. Kennedy was said to be assassinated by a lone sniper by the name of Lee
Harvey Oswald. But, is this really the case? Kennedy’s true cause of death is
still a mystery. Since Kennedy’s assassination, several conspiracy theories
have been debated. The most popular and most relevant of these theories are
that Lee Harvey Oswald didn’t act alone and there were more than a single
shooter, Oswald was employed by the Soviets to kill Kennedy, and the CIA was
involved with killing Kennedy. Let’s look at the moments leading up to and the
moment of Kennedy’s assassination, the conspiracy theories of who assassinated
Kennedy, and the likelihood that the CIA was involved.
John F. Kennedy was the 35th President of the United
States (Manchester). John had many problems to deal with during his presidency;
both foreign and domestic. He wanted to improve equal rights in the U.S. while
dealing with communists in Cuba and the Soviet Union. His decisions in dealing
with these external conflicts made people love him, but also made some hate
him. Many Americans believe John F. Kennedy is one of the greatest presidents
to ever live (Mathews).
John F. Kennedy was known by his personality. He was
competitive, witty, charismatic, and a risk taker (“John F Kennedy Personality
Traits”). Edward M. Kennedy explained it best when he said, “My brothers were
my dearest friends. They were just human beings – and they wanted to be
considered that way – but they were extraordinary. I cared very deeply about
them, loved them” (“The Kennedys on the Meaning of Life”). This quote from
Edward shows how John wasn’t big headed and that John was an easily loved
person. John also had Addison’s disease. John’s brother Robert wrote, “At least
one-half of the days he spent on this earth were days of intense physical pain”
(Manchester). This made it even more difficult for John to do his duties in
office. This also showed his dedication because even when he was in pain, he
did his job and served our country.
Why would a president so loved be shot dead? John was
seen as an amazing man to many, but seen as an idiot to others. His decisions
when it came to civil rights angered many people in the South. They believed he
was messing with state rights too much and that he should back off. Others were
angered with his decision making when it came to the Cuban missile crisis, the
Bay of the Pigs invasion, and other foreign affairs. Even though no one knows
why John was killed, many believe it was a result of his decisions while in
office.
John can be seen as a stereotypical martyr. He brought
a controversial topic (civil rights) into the light and wanted to improve it.
He also battled against the communist in Russia, Cuba, Vietnam, and all around
the world. This made him a target for those leaders. His decisions and views on
all of these issues made him a target for many. He died bettering not only our
nation, but the world.
John dealt with external conflicts everyday as
president. He was in charge of making very hard decisions that would affect
millions. But, he was very just in responding to these external conflicts. When
the CIA plotted to kill Castro using an assassin without John knowing, John
told them they should not attempt to kill Castro without getting permission
(Watkins). John found out and stopped the killing because he believed it should
be done in the politically correct way, that the CIA shouldn’t just take it
into their own hands and kill Castro. This decision may anger many people, but
John made the just decision.
John made wise and unwise decisions while in office,
no president is perfect. A very wise decision he made was the decision to go to
the moon. This decision revamped our nation’s interest in math and science. It
also pushed our space program to do something that has never been done. To this
day the lunar landings are one of the greatest feats in human history. If not
for John, who knows when and if it would’ve happened. A very unwise decision
John made while president was the decision to send troops to Cuba to capture or
kill Fidel Castro. He listened to the Joint Chiefs of Staff and sent troops to
Cuba (Manchester). Once there, every single troop was captured. John assumed
full responsibility (Manchester). John made many other wise and unwise
decisions, as any president does. But John always strived to make decisions
that would better our nation and the world.
John’s decisions affected the whole nation. Some of
his major decisions that had the most effect on American citizens up to this
day have to do with civil rights. An event that still has an effect on us today
was his decision to send Alabama’s National Guard to protect the students at
the University of Alabama (JFK Library). Two black students were enrolling into
the school. This angered many white people and they attempted to stop the black
kids (JFK Library). But, John made sure they were protected and able to attend
the school. This has a major impact on us still because this had a domino
effect. Black people saw this and believed they could also attend a public university.
While John wasn’t the only reason blacks can attend colleges in the South, he
is the reason that the racist white people couldn’t stop them.
John F. Kennedy was loved by many and hated by some
because of the controversial and tough decisions he made while in office.
The assassination of John F. Kennedy is still a topic
of heavy debate and there are multiple conspiracy theories surrounding the
incident. The most probable and relevant theories are that Lee Harvey Oswald
didn’t act alone and there were more than a single shooter, Oswald was employed
by the Soviets to kill Kennedy, and the CIA was involved with killing Kennedy.
The first conspiracy is that Lee Harvey Oswald didn’t
act alone. This conspiracy theory was created when the first bullet shot at
Kennedy took a very unlikely path. The:
Bullet pierced Kennedy's suit coat from the rear
before puncturing his body to the right of his spine. The bullet exited
Kennedy's body through the front of his neck below his Adam's apple. The bullet
— later dubbed Commission Exhibit 399, or CE 399 — then punctured Connally's
back, shattering his fifth right rib bone. After exiting the front of
Connally's chest, the bullet shot through his right wrist, breaking one of his
wrist bones, before burying itself beneath the skin of Connally's left thigh.
(Lallanilla)
This
path through two men seemed highly unlikely to officials. But, in 2004,
Discovery channel used forensic data and high tech programs to recreate the
assassination. They concluded that the path the bullet traveled in the program,
matched the path the bullet took in real life almost perfectly (Lallanilla).
This study showed the same results as a test done in 1992. The Failure Analysis
Associates used 3-D technology and the same entry point into Kennedy and the
bullets path matched the path it took in real life (Lallanilla). These tests
prove that Lee Harvey Oswald acted as a lone shooter. 31% of students polled at
Clear Springs High School believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. This
conspiracy was the second most popular theory chosen by students. This is
because some still don’t believe that the bullet could have taken the path it
took
The second theory is that Lee Harvey Oswald was
employed by the Soviets to kill Kennedy. Oswald traveled to Mexico two months
before the assassination of Kennedy. While there, Oswald went to the Soviet
Russia’s embassy and spoke with Russian spy Valeriy Kostikov (Stanglin). Many
believed that this meeting could have had something to with the assassination
(Stanglin). Oswald also had visited Russia twice before. But, his wife was from
Russia and he had no contact with spies or officials while on his trips. Oswald
was known for despising American politics and his wish to move to Russia. Also,
his meeting with Kostikov, was about getting a visa to move to Russia according
to the FBI (Stanglin). These findings make it very unlikely that the Soviet
Union had anything to do with John F. Kennedy’s assassination. In fact, only
17% of students surveyed at Clear Springs High School believed that the Soviet
Union had something to do with the assassination.
The third theory is that the CIA had some sort of
involvement in the assassination. This theory is the most interesting theory
out of all three of these theories. This is because in an interview with CNN,
Dave Perry stated “The problem is, of all of [the conspiracy theories], this is
one I can't debunk” (Cullen). The CIA’s relationship with Kennedy went sour
when Kennedy called them out for conspiring to kill Fidel Castro without Kennedy’s
consent. Kennedy ended the idea of the assassination which angered the CIA.
Also, ex CIA chief, Allen Dulles, was on the Warren Commissions (Cullen). This
raised some eyebrows because cover up for the CIA would be extremely easy with
Dulles being a factor in the investigation. With the release of the
assassination files, more data surfaced that pointed fingers towards the CIA.
The CIA had employed journalist to write fake news involving the assassination.
This alongside a CIA agent warning Lyndon B Johnson to be careful because he
didn’t want to end up like Kennedy only fuels the theory. In fact, the CIA’s
involvement in the assassination was the most popular answer chosen by students
at Clear Springs High School with 37% of students agreeing with the theory. The
inability to debunk the theory that the CIA was involved with John F Kennedy’s
assassination alongside the widespread belief that the CIA was in fact involved
proves this is the most probable theory.
There is still no clear answer to who killed John F
Kennedy. But, through the process of elimination, it is clear to see that the
either Lee Harvey Oswald was a lone shooter, or the CIA had something to do
with Kennedy’s death.
On the fateful day of November 22, 1963, in Dallas,
Texas, the United States of America lost its President John F. Kennedy. The
assassination of Kennedy sparked multiple conspiracy theories. The most popular
and most relevant of these theories are that Lee Harvey Oswald didn’t act alone
and there were more than a single shooter, Oswald was employed by the Soviets
to kill Kennedy, and the CIA was involved with killing Kennedy. Even 54 years
later there is still no clear answer to who killed Kennedy. However, it is
likely that the CIA had some sort of involvement in the assassination.
Works Cited
“Civil Rights
Movement.” John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum,
jfklibrary.org/JFK/JFK-in-History/Civil-Rights-Movement.aspx.
Cullen, Terence. “Five
JFK Assassination Theories That Records Could Finally Debunk.” NY Daily
News, NEW YORK DAILY NEWS, 25 Oct. 2017,
www.nydailynews.com/news/national/jfk-assassination-theories-records-finally-debunk-article-1.3587599
“John F Kennedy
Personality Traits.” HRFnd, 9 Apr. 2015,
healthresearchfunding.org/john-f-kennedy-personality-traits/
“John F.
Kennedy.” The White House, The United States Government, 16 Aug.
2017, www.whitehouse.gov/1600/presidents/johnfkennedy
Lallanilla, Marc.
“What Is the Single-Bullet Theory?” LiveScience, Purch, 20 Nov. 2013,
www.livescience.com/41369-single-bullet-theory-jfk-assassination.html.
Manchester,
William. “John F. Kennedy.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia
Britannica, Inc., 22 Sept. 2017,
www.britannica.com/biography/John-F-Kennedy#toc277410
Stanglin, Doug. “JFK
Assassination Files: Oswald Meets KGB Officer at Soviet Embassy in Mexico
City.” USA Today, Gannett Satellite Information Network, 4 Nov.
2017,
www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/11/04/jfk-assassination-files-documenew-release-covers-oswald-calls-soveit-embassy-mexico-city-soviet-spie/832138001/
“The Kennedys
on the Meaning of Life.” Esquire, Esquire, 11 Oct. 2017,
www.esquire.com/news-politics/interviews/a6770/kennedy-family-history-0110/
Watkins, Eli.
“JFK File Release: Mob Hits on Castro, a Threat on Oswald.” CNN,
Cable News Network, 28 Oct. 2017,
www.cnn.com/2017/10/26/politics/jfk-file-release-highlights/index.html
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