John F. Kennedy Facts & Worksheets

• After being active in the House, Kennedy ran for senate position in 1952 and won against the Incumbent Republican Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. His slogan helped, “He Will Do More for Massachusetts”, helped him win the majority vote. In 1958, Kennedy, the Democratic incumbent, won a second six-year term by defeating Vincent J. Celeste, the Republican contender. Following his re-election, Kennedy commenced preparations for his presidential campaign by embarking on a nationwide tour to establish his candidature for the 1960 Presidential election.

KENNEDY AS PRESIDENT 

• In 1960, Kennedy announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential nomination. During this time, people were already calling him JFK. Despite some questioning about his age and experience, he managed to gather numerous supporters because of his charisma and eloquence. JFK’s Catholic faith had a significant role in his electoral victory as he garnered a loyal support base among numerous Catholic voters. Prior to the election, there were widespread concerns regarding the potential influence of JFK’s religious beliefs on his decision-making. 
• To address these fears, on 12 September 1960, he famously told the Greater Houston Ministerial Association: “I am not the Catholic candidate for president. I am the Democratic Party candidate for president who also happens to be a Catholic. I do not speak for my Church on public matters – and the Church does not speak for me.”
• Despite prevalent anti-Catholic sentiments among Americans during that period, his outspoken endorsement of the separation of Church and state helped alleviate the tension. The JFK and Richard Nixon debate marked the inaugural televised presidential debate in the history of the United States. This event was a significant achievement in the country's political history, as television assumes a prominent position in shaping political affairs. The campaign JFK had a surge in momentum following the initial debate. 
• During the election, he secured victory with a narrow margin of 0.2% in the popular vote (49.7% to 49.5%) and 303 electoral votes compared to Nixon’s 219. Therefore, John F. Kennedy, at the age of 43, became the youngest individual and the first Roman Catholic to be elected as the President of the United States. The 80th Congress saw the entrance of a conservative Democrat who was only 29 years old. 

POLICIES OF JFK

• Under JFK’s administration, the Manpower Development and Training Act of 1962 was established, which was the first ever job training programme of its scale. In 1962, the Social Service Amendments were also passed, which increased federal funding to local departments for training, job placement and support services for unemployed individuals. A programme called Aid to Families with Dependent Children – Unemployed Parent (AFDC-UP) provided support for low-income families.
• JFK employed Keynesian economics, as theorised by John Maynard Keynes, by focusing on federal tax and spending policies. According to Keynes, economic growth and lowering of unemployment could be achieved through federal deficit spending. JFK pumped funds into the construction of state motorways. He also created the Food Stamp programme. JFK also accelerated tax refunds, farm price supports and GI life insurance dividends.
• Fair Labor Standards 1961 - Amendments to the 1938 act saw a minimum wage of $1.25 established and minors further protected from labour exploitation.
• Social Security Act 1961 - It permitted male workers early retirement at the age of 62 and extended benefit payments to an aged widow, widower and dependent parents.
• Housing Act 1961 - Provided low-cost housing and low-interest loans to those who needed it, especially the elderly and low-income families.
• Equal Pay Act 1963 - This assured women of equal pay to men doing the same job.
• Maternal and Child Health and Mental Retardation Planning Amendment to the Social Security Act 1963 - Aimed at supporting mental illness and intellectual disabilities, it provided appropriations for the construction of facilities for the prevention, care and treatment of people with mental health conditions.

BERLIN CRISIS

• A number of East Germans sought to escape poverty-stricken East Germany (the GDR). They wanted to flee to West Germany as it was described as being prosperous due to Western control. Nikita Khrushchev demanded the West leave Berlin, but they refused. The ruling communist government in East Germany remained loyal to the USSR. Under the leadership of Walter Ulbricht, industry remained nationalised. In response to the migration to West Germany, on 13 August 1961, the GDR constructed a barbed wire fence along the border of East and West Berlin. These wire barriers were later replaced by a concrete wall.
• The East German government feared the appeal of the economic miracle of the East and that its citizens would attempt to move. At the same time, West Germans were alarmed by communism and capitalist spies from the East. Between 1961 and 1989, the Berlin Wall divided East and West Germany. During this period, hundreds of East Berliners were shot while trying to cross the wall. Guards were given financial rewards for every death of someone trying to escape. For 28 years, the Berlin Wall was a physical reminder of the Cold War and the division of Germany.
• At the height of the Cold War in 1963, US President John F. Kennedy visited West Berlin where he delivered his speech Ich bin ein Berliner, or I am a Berliner. 

CRISIS OVER CUBA

• In October 1962, the US and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) were on the brink of a nuclear war. For 13 days, the world was on standby for the possibility of a direct confrontation between the two superpowers. The US imposed a trade embargo on Cuba, meaning Cuba lost its major consumer of sugar and tobacco. Furthermore, it stopped economic aid and banned Cuba from trading with them. In 1961, the US cut its ties with Cuba. Castro then sought support from the USSR, which they obliged by supplying oil, weapons and other goods to Cuba. 
• In 1961, JFK approved the plan to invade Cuba and overthrow Castro. On 17 April 1961, a CIA paramilitary group, made up primarily of Cuban exiles intending to remove Castro from power, landed in the Bay of Pigs in Cuba. The invasion failed as 20,000 soldiers of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces defeated them in three days. The fallout from the failed invasion left the US feeling humiliated while the increased threat felt by Cuba saw it seek greater support from the USSR. By July 1962, the Cuban army was heavily equipped.

VIETNAM

• In 1961, JFK dispatched a contingent of 500 Special Forces troops and military advisers to South Vietnam with the objective of providing more support to the country in its efforts to counteract the spread of communism. In 1962, the government had approximately 11,000 military advisers. During the height of Ngo Dinh Diem's repression of Buddhists, President JFK dispatched US Secretary of Defence Robert McNamara and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Maxwell Taylor to South Vietnam in order to evaluate the circumstances.
• According to their study, they evaluated that the military aspect had achieved advancements in comparison to the political aspect - Diem's administration. Furthermore, they concluded that by the conclusion of 1963, American military soldiers stationed in the nation might be pulled out. The Strategic Hamlet Program was a strategic initiative devised by Ngo Dinh Diem's South Vietnam and sanctioned by the United States to counter communist insurgencies in the rural areas of South Vietnam. The government aimed to establish “protective hamlets” where individuals would get government-backed protection, assistance, and financial aid to defend against the Vietcong. The initiative would cease the assistance provided to the Vietcong by rural individuals.

CIVIL RIGHTS

• On 1 February 1960, four African-American students organised a nonviolent protest in Greensboro, North Carolina. Known as the Greensboro sit-in, the event influenced sit-in movements nationwide. The Greensboro sit-in was spearheaded by four African-American students: Ezell Blair, Jr., later known as Jibreel Khazan, Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil and David Richmond. The Greensboro sit-in occurred in Woolworth’s general merchandise store. The Greensboro Four bought toothpaste and other small items and kept their receipts as proof of purchase.
• Afterwards, they sat at the lunch counter and asked for a cup of coffee. Staff refused to take their orders, however, as the store policy prohibited black people from being at the lunch counter – African-Americans were only allowed to stand at the snack bar. 
• The Greensboro Four refused to leave and stayed in the store until closing time. The following day, additional students participated in the sit-in. The store contacted the police but they could not arrest the students as they were paying customers.
• The sit-in had a positive impact as it received national attention through the media. Dining facilities across the southern US began to follow racial integration. Furthermore, the sit-in proved the effectiveness of nonviolent protest and was a contributory factor in the formation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). 
• In 1961, a group of civil rights activists called the Freedom Riders engaged in Freedom Rides wherein they rode interstate segregated buses across the southern US. As a form of nonviolent protest, a number of activists rode segregated buses, used whites-only lavatories and occupied whites-only lunch counters in bus terminals in Alabama, South Carolina and several southern states. They attracted both international attention and violence from white protesters, while some were arrested and indicted. 
• With the help of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the first Freedom Ride left Washington, D.C. on 4 May 1961 and was scheduled to arrive in New Orleans on 17 May. The activists were challenged by police officers, Ku Klux Klan chapters, violent mobs and white protesters. As the Freedom Rides garnered international attention, the Interstate Commerce Commission under the Kennedy administration prohibited segregation on buses and terminals.