Robert F. Kennedy

Robert F. Kennedy
Born	Robert Francis Kennedy 20 11, 1925
Birthplace	Brookline, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	Template:Death date and age Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Politician, lawyer
Known for	U.S. Attorney General, U.S. Senator from New York, 1968 presidential campaign
Education	University of Virginia (LL.B.)
Spouse(s)	Ethel Skakel (m. 1950)
Children	11
Awards	Presidential Medal of Freedom (posthumous, 2008)

Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), commonly known by his initials RFK, was an American politician and lawyer who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from 1961 to 1964 and as a U.S. Senator from New York from 1965 until his assassination in 1968. A member of the Democratic Party and a central figure in one of America's most prominent political dynasties, Kennedy played a defining role in the civil rights struggles, anti-organized crime efforts, and foreign policy debates of the 1960s. He rose from managing his brother John F. Kennedy's political campaigns to serving as the president's closest advisor, and later emerged in his own right as an advocate for the poor, for racial minorities, and for an end to the Vietnam War. His 1968 presidential campaign galvanized a broad coalition of supporters drawn from working-class, African American, Hispanic, Catholic, and young communities across the United States. Kennedy was shot shortly after winning the California Democratic primary on June 5, 1968, and died the following day at the age of forty-two. His death, coming just two months after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., marked one of the most traumatic periods in modern American political history.

Early Life

Robert Francis Kennedy was born on November 20, 1925, in Brookline, Massachusetts, the seventh of nine children born to Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy. The Kennedy family was one of the most prominent Irish Catholic families in the United States; his father was a successful businessman, investor, and political figure who served as the first chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and as U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom. His mother was the daughter of John F. "Honey Fitz" Fitzgerald, a former mayor of Boston.

Growing up in a large, competitive, and politically engaged family, Robert was often overshadowed by his older brothers, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. and John. The family moved several times during his childhood, from Brookline to Bronxville, New York, and later to other residences. Robert attended a series of private schools during his formative years. The Kennedy household placed a premium on public service, athletic competition, and intellectual debate, values that shaped Robert's outlook throughout his life.

During World War II, Kennedy enlisted in the United States Navy in 1943, shortly before his eighteenth birthday. He served as a seaman aboard the destroyer USS Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., a vessel named in honor of his eldest brother, who had been killed in action during a bombing mission over Europe in 1944. Kennedy was discharged from the Navy in 1946.

In 1948, Kennedy traveled to the Middle East as a correspondent for The Boston Post, reporting from Palestine during the period leading up to and following the establishment of the state of Israel. His dispatches from the region provided firsthand observations of the conflict and demonstrated an early interest in international affairs and journalism.

Education

Kennedy attended Harvard University, where he played on the varsity football team and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree. After graduating from Harvard, he enrolled at the University of Virginia School of Law, where he received his Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) degree. His legal education at Virginia provided him with the foundation for a career that would encompass both the practice of law and public service at the highest levels of the federal government.

Career

Early Legal and Political Work

After completing his law degree, Kennedy began his professional career in the early 1950s. He worked briefly as a lawyer at the United States Department of Justice, gaining initial experience in federal law enforcement. He also worked as a correspondent for The Boston Post during his earlier travels. However, Kennedy soon shifted his focus to his brother John's political ambitions, resigning from his position to manage John F. Kennedy's successful campaign for the United States Senate in 1952. This campaign marked the beginning of Robert Kennedy's reputation as a tenacious and effective political operative.

Work with Senate Committees

In 1953, Kennedy joined the staff of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, chaired by Senator Joseph McCarthy of Wisconsin. Kennedy served as an assistant counsel to the committee during the period of McCarthy's anti-communist investigations. Kennedy's tenure on the McCarthy committee was relatively brief, and his views on McCarthy's methods were complex; he later distanced himself from the senator's more controversial tactics.

Kennedy gained significant national attention from 1957 to 1959 as the chief counsel of the Senate Labor Rackets Committee (formally the Select Committee on Improper Activities in Labor and Management). In this role, he led high-profile investigations into corruption within organized labor, most notably conducting aggressive public questioning of Jimmy Hoffa, the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Kennedy's confrontations with Hoffa became a defining feature of the committee's work and brought Kennedy widespread recognition as a relentless investigator of union corruption and organized crime. The adversarial relationship between Kennedy and Hoffa would persist for years and became one of the most notable personal rivalries in American political history.

Kennedy resigned from the committee to manage his brother John's campaign for the presidency in the 1960 presidential election. His organizational skills and political instincts were credited as instrumental in securing John F. Kennedy's victory over Republican nominee Richard Nixon.

United States Attorney General (1961–1964)

Following John F. Kennedy's inauguration as president in January 1961, Robert Kennedy was appointed United States Attorney General, becoming one of the youngest cabinet members in American history at the age of thirty-five. His appointment was not without controversy, as critics questioned whether the president's brother possessed sufficient experience for the position and raised concerns about nepotism. Nevertheless, Kennedy's tenure as attorney general became one of the most consequential in the history of the office.

Kennedy made the fight against organized crime a central priority of the Justice Department. Building on his work with the Senate Labor Rackets Committee, he expanded federal prosecutions of organized crime figures and significantly increased the resources devoted to combating the Mafia and other criminal organizations.

Kennedy's role in the civil rights movement was among the most significant aspects of his tenure. The Justice Department under his leadership played a key role in enforcing federal court orders related to desegregation, including the enrollment of James Meredith at the University of Mississippi in 1962 and the protection of Freedom Riders in the South. Kennedy dispatched federal marshals to protect civil rights activists and worked to advance voting rights for African Americans in the southern states. His relationship with the civil rights movement was, however, complex. Kennedy authorized the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to conduct wiretaps on Martin Luther King Jr. and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference on a limited basis, a decision that has been the subject of significant historical scrutiny and criticism.

Kennedy was deeply involved in U.S. foreign policy during his brother's presidency, particularly regarding Cuba. He played a role in the planning and aftermath of the Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961 and was a key member of the Executive Committee of the National Security Council (ExComm) during the Cuban Missile Crisis of October 1962, a thirteen-day confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union that brought the two superpowers to the brink of nuclear war. Kennedy later authored a memoir of the crisis titled Thirteen Days, which provided an insider's account of the deliberations within the Kennedy administration during the standoff.

Throughout his time as attorney general, Robert Kennedy served as President Kennedy's closest advisor, exerting influence that extended well beyond the traditional scope of the attorney general's office. He was involved in decisions ranging from civil rights policy to national security strategy.

The assassination of President Kennedy on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas, was a devastating personal and political blow to Robert Kennedy. He remained in office as attorney general for several months under the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson, but the relationship between Kennedy and Johnson was strained, marked by personal animosity and political disagreements that had predated the assassination.

United States Senator from New York (1965–1968)

In 1964, Kennedy resigned as attorney general to run for the U.S. Senate in New York. His candidacy attracted criticism from opponents who labeled him a "carpetbagger," arguing that he had no substantial ties to the state. Kennedy had grown up in Massachusetts and had most recently lived in Virginia while serving in the Justice Department. Despite this criticism, he defeated Republican incumbent Senator Kenneth Keating in the November 1964 general election, benefiting in part from the strong Democratic showing nationally in President Johnson's landslide victory over Barry Goldwater.

As a senator, Kennedy focused on issues of poverty, economic inequality, and social justice. He sponsored legislation designed to attract private business investment to economically blighted communities, most notably the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation project in Brooklyn, New York, which sought to revitalize one of the nation's largest African American neighborhoods through a combination of public and private resources. The Bedford-Stuyvesant initiative became a model for community development efforts and reflected Kennedy's belief that private enterprise could be harnessed to address urban poverty.

Kennedy became an increasingly vocal opponent of the Vietnam War, breaking with the Johnson administration's policy of escalation. His opposition to the war, combined with his advocacy for civil rights and anti-poverty programs, placed him at the forefront of a growing liberal movement within the Democratic Party. Kennedy traveled abroad extensively during his Senate tenure, visiting eastern Europe, Latin America, and South Africa, where he spoke out against apartheid and in favor of human rights. He formed working relationships with prominent leaders of social movements, including Martin Luther King Jr., César Chávez, and Walter Reuther of the United Auto Workers.

1968 Presidential Campaign

On March 16, 1968, Kennedy announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States, entering a race that had already been disrupted by Senator Eugene McCarthy of Minnesota, who had performed strongly in the New Hampshire primary against President Johnson. Johnson's subsequent decision on March 31 to withdraw from the race dramatically altered the political landscape, with Vice President Hubert Humphrey entering as an additional candidate.

Kennedy's campaign appealed to a diverse coalition of voters, including poor and working-class Americans, African Americans, Hispanic Americans, Catholics, and young people. He campaigned aggressively in primary states, emphasizing his opposition to the Vietnam War, his commitment to civil rights, and his proposals to combat poverty. The assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4, 1968, further galvanized Kennedy's campaign; his impromptu speech in Indianapolis on the night of King's death, in which he informed the crowd of the assassination and called for reconciliation, is among the most remembered moments of American political oratory.

Kennedy's principal rival for the Democratic nomination among primary voters was Eugene McCarthy. The two competed in a series of state primaries, with Kennedy winning several key contests. On June 4, 1968, Kennedy won the California primary, a critical victory that strengthened his position in the race for the nomination.

Assassination

Shortly after midnight on June 5, 1968, moments after delivering his victory speech at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, Kennedy was shot by Sirhan Sirhan, a twenty-four-year-old Palestinian-Jordanian immigrant. Kennedy was struck by multiple gunshots as he passed through the hotel's kitchen pantry. He was rushed to Good Samaritan Hospital, where surgeons operated for several hours, but he did not recover. Robert Francis Kennedy was pronounced dead on June 6, 1968, at the age of forty-two.

Sirhan was apprehended at the scene and subsequently convicted of first-degree murder. He stated that his actions were motivated by Kennedy's support for Israel. The assassination has been the subject of numerous conspiracy theories over the decades, including claims regarding the possibility of a second gunman.

Kennedy was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, near the grave of his brother, President John F. Kennedy.

Personal Life

Robert Kennedy married Ethel Skakel on June 17, 1950. Ethel Kennedy was the daughter of George Skakel, a wealthy businessman. Together, the couple had eleven children, the last of whom, Rory Kennedy, was born after Robert's death. The Kennedy family's home at Hickory Hill in McLean, Virginia, became a gathering place for politicians, intellectuals, journalists, and activists during the 1960s.

Kennedy was a devout Roman Catholic, and his faith informed his views on social justice and public service. He was known within the family as a devoted father despite the demanding nature of his political career. His relationship with his brother John was exceptionally close, and the president's assassination in 1963 profoundly affected him for the remainder of his life.

His widow, Ethel Kennedy, became a prominent figure in her own right, continuing work in human rights and social justice causes. Their children have been active in politics, law, journalism, and public service. Among his children, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend served as Lieutenant Governor of Maryland, and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. became a prominent environmental lawyer and political figure.

Recognition

In 2008, President George W. Bush signed legislation renaming the Justice Department headquarters in Washington, D.C., as the Robert F. Kennedy Department of Justice Building. At the ceremony, Kennedy's daughter Kerry Kennedy spoke, while also criticizing aspects of the Bush administration's policies, particularly regarding the Iraq War.

Kennedy's legacy as attorney general has been invoked by subsequent holders of the office. In 2014, upon the resignation of Attorney General Eric Holder, commentators drew comparisons between Holder's tenure and Kennedy's, noting their shared focus on civil rights enforcement and their close relationships with their respective presidents.

The Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization, founded by members of the Kennedy family, continues to carry on work in the fields of human rights advocacy and social justice. Kennedy's 1966 visit to South Africa, where he delivered his famous "Ripple of Hope" speech at the University of Cape Town, is commemorated through ongoing programs and partnerships in that country.

Kennedy has been the subject of numerous biographies, documentaries, and academic studies. His book Thirteen Days, recounting the Cuban Missile Crisis, remains a significant primary source for historians studying the Kennedy administration's handling of the Cold War's most dangerous confrontation.

Legacy

Robert F. Kennedy's political career, though cut short at the age of forty-two, left a lasting imprint on American politics and public life. His evolution from a tough-minded political operative and prosecutor to a champion of the poor, minorities, and the anti-war movement represented one of the most notable political transformations of the twentieth century. As attorney general, he advanced federal enforcement of civil rights laws and expanded the government's fight against organized crime at a time when both efforts faced significant resistance. As a senator and presidential candidate, he articulated a vision of American society that sought to bridge racial and economic divides.

Kennedy's 1968 campaign is often cited by political historians as a pivotal moment in American electoral politics, representing an attempt to build a multiracial, cross-class coalition at a time of deep national division over the Vietnam War, civil rights, and social change. His assassination, alongside that of Martin Luther King Jr. earlier that year and his brother's five years before, contributed to a pervasive sense of disillusionment and crisis in American public life during the late 1960s.

The Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, which Kennedy helped establish, became a model for community development corporations across the United States and influenced subsequent federal and state approaches to urban revitalization. His international travels and advocacy for human rights abroad, particularly in South Africa and Latin America, extended his influence beyond domestic politics.

Kennedy is interred at Arlington National Cemetery, where his gravesite is marked by a simple white wooden cross and a granite plaza inscribed with quotations from his speeches. Along with his brothers John and Ted Kennedy, he is considered a defining figure of modern American liberalism, and his name continues to resonate in political discourse decades after his death.