By Justin Lafeen

Forty years after the assassination of John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963, three Utah State University professors shared their feelings about the life and legacy of the youngest president in U.S. history.

"Kennedy was sexy!" said Dr. Jay Anderson, joint professor of history and political science, who taught English in East Africa in 1963. "I mean, how could you not identify with a president that liked James Bond?"

During the open forum, sponsored by the USU College Democrats, the Public Affairs Board and Pi Sigma Alpha, Dr. Anderson; Dr. Ross Peterson, professor in the history and political science departments; and Dr. William Furlong, professor of political science, shared their perspectives of President Kennedy and his life.

Anderson explained how during the presidential debates Americans saw Kennedy as "a wonderful breath of Irish spring."

"Nixon was stiff and gray, like a used car salesman. Kennedy was Irish, funny, just a wit!" said Anderson. "[The Kennedys] just had this charm."

Though the majority of Americans today remember John F. Kennedy as the president who was assassinated while riding in a convertible in Dallas, the panel of educators expressed regret that many today forget the constructive aspects of Kennedy's life.

"We need to focus on the positives," said Dr. Furlong, "the fact that World War III did not occur."

In 1960 Kennedy was the youngest man to be elected to the presidency. He was 42 years old, and remained president about 1,000 days. During his tenure, several important historical events occurred, including the Cuban Missile Crisis, the upheaval in Laos in 1961, and the events that led to the creation of the Berlin Wall in August of that year.

"We did not attack." said Furlong. "The vision was there, the vision of the future."

As the Soviets had success with Sputnik in 1957, the lagging position of the United States in space technology was also a topic within the administration of President Kennedy. But, according to Furlong, Kennedy was "one of the great people in innovation."

"[Kennedy] surrounded himself with people with ideas," said Peterson. "He himself won a Pulitzer Prize."

Another key aspect of the Kennedy era was the civil rights movement of 1963.

Dr. Furlong was at the University of Florida one year after the "integration" of African-Americans and told of when we noticed drinking fountains with paper cups next to them. He inquired as to the reasoning for the additional cups and it was explained to him that they were placed there in case "a black drank out of [the fountain]."

"I marched on Washington on Aug. 28, 1963," said Anderson, "me and 500,000 other people." Anderson added that Kennedy had the resources at hand to use military force to control the famous civil rights protest, "but he didn't."

When the assassination occurred in 1963, students in Uganda where Anderson was teaching walked barefoot for two days out of "grief and respect" for JFK.

"There are references to Camelot, and [Kennedy] was the Great White Knight," said Anderson.

MS
MS