JFK on civil rights, June 11, 1963

Today is the centennial of President John F. Kennedy’s birth.

On June 11, 1963, President Kennedy addressed the nation from the Oval Office on the urgency of civil rights. Earlier that day he had ordered the National Guard to protect African American students at the University of Alabama.

This was his finest moment. Here is to the memory of a president who could inspire us, challenge us, and make us proud.