John Fitzgerald Kennedy

John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 - November 22, 1963), often referred to as John F. Kennedy, JFK or Jack Kennedy, was the 35th President of the United States. He served from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. A member of the politically prominent Irish-American Kennedy family, he is considered an icon of American liberalism. During World War II, he was cited for exceptional bravery and heroism while rescuing a fellow sailor in the South Pacific. Kennedy served his home state of Massachusetts in the U.S. Congress during 1947-1960, as both a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. He was elected President in 1960, in one of the closest elections in history.

Major events during his presidency included the Bay of Pigs invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the building of the Berlin Wall, the Space Race, early events of the Vietnam War, and the American Civil Rights Movement. In rankings of U.S. presidents, historians usually grade Kennedy above average, but among the general public he is often regarded as among the greatest Presidents. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963. Official investigations later determined Lee Harvey Oswald to be the culprit. His assassination is considered a defining moment in U.S. history because of its traumatic impact on the nation, its impact on the political history of the ensuing decades, Kennedy's status as an icon for a new generation of Americans and American aspirations, and for the mystery and conspiracy allegations that surround his assassination.

Contents [hide]

1 Early life and education

2 Military service

3 Early political career

4 McCarthy and the Kennedys

5 1960 presidential election

6 Presidency

6.1 Foreign policies

6.2 Domestic policies

6.2.1 Civil rights

6.3 Space program

6.4 Cabinet

6.5 Supreme Court appointments

7 Image, social life and family

8 Assassination

9 Legacy and memorials

9.1 Memorials

10 Criticism

11 Trivia

12 Kennedy in film

13 See also

14 References

14.1 Secondary sources

14.2 Primary sources

15 Media

16 External links

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Early life and education

Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, the son of Joseph P. Kennedy, Sr. and Rose Fitzgerald. His fatherÒ's motto was, "A Kennedy never comes in second place". Years later, it was revealed that Kennedy had been diagnosed as a young man with Addison's Disease, a rare endocrine disorder. This and other medical disorders were kept from the press, and the public, throughout Kennedy's life.

Kennedy attended Edward Devotion School for four years (kindergarten in 1922 to third grade, followed by a stint at the Dexter School in Boston, a year at Canterbury School, and then Choate in Wallingford, Connecticut, one of the country's most elite private boarding schools for boys, from which he graduated in 1935. On September 25, 1935, he sailed to London with his parents and his sister Kathleen. There he enrolled at the London School of Economics with the intention of studying political economy for a year under the tutelage of Professor Harold Laski, but an illness hospitalized him shortly after his enrollment. His father insisted he return to the US. Later that fall of 1935, he enrolled in Princeton University, but was forced to leave after contracting jaundice. The next fall, he began attending Harvard College. Kennedy traveled to Europe twice during his years at Harvard, visiting Britain, while his father was serving as ambassador to the Court of St. James's. In 1937, Kennedy was prescribed steroids to control his colitis, which only increased his medical problems causing him to develop osteoporosis of the lower lumbar spine [1]. After graduating Harvard, he attended Stanford University's business school for a few months and then traveled to South America.

In 1940, Kennedy wrote his honors thesis, entitled "Why England Slept", about the British dealings concerning the Munich Agreement. He initially intended for his thesis to be for college use only, but his father encouraged him to publish it in a book. He graduated cum laude from Harvard with a degree in international affairs in June 1940. His thesis was published in 1940 and became a bestseller. [2]

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Military service

In spring 1941, Kennedy volunteered for the U.S. Army but was rejected, mainly because of his troublesome back. However, the U.S. Navy accepted him in September of that year with the influence of the director of the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI), a former naval attachй to Ambassador Joseph Kennedy. As an ensign, he served in the office that supplied bulletins and briefing information for the Secretary of the Navy. It was during this assignment that the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred. It was also during this time that he began a romantic relationship with Inga Arvad, a suspected Nazi spy. The relationship ended, however, when Kennedy was transferred to the ONI field office in South Carolina. He attended the Naval Reserve Officers Training School and Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Training Center before being assigned for duty in Panama and eventually the Pacific theater. He participated in various commands in the Pacific theater and earned the rank of lieutenant, commanding a patrol torpedo (PT) boat.[3]

J.F. Kennedy on his navy patrol boat, PT 109On August 2, 1943, Kennedy's boat, the PT-109, was taking part in a nighttime military raid near New Georgia (near the Solomon Islands) when it was rammed by a Japanese destroyer. Kennedy was thrown across the deck, injuring his already-troubled back. Still, Kennedy somehow towed a wounded man three miles (5 km) in the ocean, arriving at an island