Great Men?

We think of universal civil rights, for all races, ethnicitys, genders and political ideologies as uniquely American ideals and that idea may now have some real currency. It wasn't always the case and not so very long ago. The KKK didn't just preach hatred, separation and suppression of Blacks within our society but for a host of other groups as well. When mainstream American culture considered itself to be White, protestant and Western European, they didn't act too kindly toward or grant many opportunities to anyone else.

When John Kennedy, a Catholic, got elected President, it was a big deal. He needed to make very clear that he was going to act in the interest of and work to advance and protect the rights of all Americans and he did. It was unfair to demand this of a man when no other President had ever concerned himself with it but that's the way it was. He wasn't President for very long. He made some bad mistakes while he was. You can argue that JFK was afflicted with many personal and political weaknesses and you wouldn't be wrong but on that one important issue of equal opportunity for all Americans, he tried hard to keep his promise.

JFK was a Catholic. Many in this country never thought letting in large numbers of Catholics was a good idea. They thought that the Church exercised too great an influence over its adherents in secular matters as well as spiritual. JFK said the Church would never speak through him. While he was President, everyone in the country saw that this was true. After his Presidency, nobody ever looked at race, religion, gender, social class or political ideology the same way again.

If John and Bobby paid with their lives to put a down payment on tolerance of diversity in America, Teddy was the one who paid off the debt through a lifetime of service. He had nothing in common with the people he championed. He got nothing for that championship from his peer group. Like his brothers, he was a man of intemperate appetites and fatal flaws. The desire to retire from public service and indulge himself in private life, must have been overwhelming. He didn't. He, more than any other man in the last half century, at great cost to himself, has changed the way Americans regard each other.

Even though the image of JFK has tarnished over the years. No other President maintains such a following. You see his image displayed prominently in the homes of all kinds of people. On the mantle, or piano, embossed on a decorative plate above the kitchen stove.

None of the Kennedys may be the guy you want your kids to grow up to emulate. If you are their coreligionist, you may see them as heretics. Were they great men? They'll have to do until somebody better comes along. It may be awhile.

Not many but some in the Catholic Church want to take back the legacy of the Kennedy brothers. It's not a good idea. They are welcome to try. It's still a free country, so far.