The 1960s were a tumultuous time for all Americans, regardless of their race, gender, or beliefs. They were an era of dramatic change and they helped shape the modern world into what it is today. Needless to say, a lot went on in this short period of time, and one the era’s most important issues was civil rights. John F. Kennedy, a civil rights proponent, made his “Civil Rights Address” on June 11, 1963. The address is one of history’s greatest speeches, and it helped break down the figurative wall dividing America.
Thanks to Kennedy’s charm, tone, ability to create a sense of unity, and overall stellar use of rhetoric, all Americans felt a little freer on the day of this historic address. At no other known point in history has the world changed or grown as fast as it did in the 20th century. As Myron Marty from Scholastic says, “The 20th century was a time of enormous changes in American life. ” It is amazing to think our world went from mostly isolated farmers with no complex technology to an advanced interconnected world in just the span of 100 years. Of course this change could not happen without its catalysts.
People like Adolf Hitler, Martin Luther King, and Franklin D. Roosevelt changed the world with their words alone. Each of these speakers, along with their contemporaries, used rhetoric to accomplish their goals and bring fourth both positive and negative changes. The speeches used in the “American Rhetoric: Top 100 Speeches” are ubiquitous in our culture and in many others due to the impact they made. Some speeches promoted peace, others promoted war, and some introduced a new era. The speech I chose, “Civil Rights Address” by John F. Kennedy, is a perfect example of a speech that brought forth change in the world.
Before the 20th century, it was not uncommon for people to suffer mistreatment for something as trivial as skin color. It sounds silly now, but it was a huge deal over 50 years ago. Without people like Kennedy, racism could possibly be just as common as it was 100 years ago, today. Thanks to the rhetoric employed by Kennedy and the many others like him, we live in a vastly different world than just 100 years ago. Kennedy is considered one of America’s most likeable presidents. Even people who hated his ideas, often could not deny he had charm. Kennedy’s speaking skills were also top notch, and he used rhetoric to great effect.
His “Civil Rights Address” was no exception, and used rhetoric masterfully. The most obvious rhetoric used in this speech is repetition of the word “we. ” Whenever Kennedy refers to civil rights, he doesn’t refer to it as his own belief or the belief of a select few, rather he refers to is as something “we” all support together. He often repeats all people, black and white, are equal Americans working together for a goal “we” all share. A good example of this from “Civil Right Address” is the line “We face, therefore, a moral crisis as a country and a people. Speaking of American, Kennedy is also quite the fan of repeating the words “America” or “American. ”
He likes to remind everyone that, at the end of the day, “America” has “Americans” of all colors. In my opinion, Kennedy uses these words to create a sense of unity in the country. At this point in time, numerous Americans viewed people of a different race as separate from them. Almost like they existed in a different country. Kennedy wanted to quash this way of thinking, and bring all people together. He repeats these words to hammer the point into the brains of all Americans, and show them how serious he is about this issue.
He probably also hopes to show people who do not really care about civil rights they need to, that as an “American” it is there duty to make sure “we” are all equal. Throughout this entire speech, Kennedy shows little emotion and is very serious. He maintains a steady volume for the speech’s entire duration, and never turns his poker face off. This, obviously, conveys that Kennedy is very serious about this issue. It is so serious that even a “party president” like Kennedy cannot joke around. Kennedy clearly thinks highly of civil rights, and his calm demeanor begs the viewer to do the same.
The final aspect of rhetoric Kennedy uses is simple straightforward language. I believe there are two reasons for this. The first reason is so all Americans, educated and uneducated, could understand his speech, and the second reason is to make supporting civil rights seem like the obvious choice. If Kennedy used a lot of jargon, his speech would be needlessly complicated, and the more complicated something is the more faults it has. The simple language makes the issue seem simple with a simple solution. Kennedy is a great speaker, who used rhetoric as a vehicle for his ideas that changed the world.
America 50 years ago was a different place than America today. It is almost hard to imagine so much changed in such a short time. There were almost too many differences to count, but one of the biggest differences was the way people treated their fellow Americans who happened to have a different sin color then they did. Things were already heated since the end of slavery, but that heat reached its peak in the mid-20th century. There we riots, fights, and protests in every corner of America. It was clear something had to happen or America would eventually destroy itself from the inside.
The topic of civil rights first appeared after Lincoln freed the slaves, but it didn’t gain any traction until after World War 2. After World War 2, people of color were outraged at the fact men who almost died defending their country came home to a country who seemed to not care about them. As PBS said, “Some veterans came back with a militant attitude ready to fight. They realized that Jim Crow was not inevitable and the South didn’t have to be that way. ” Politicians were split on the issue, some wanted civil rights, and others believed things were fine the way they were.
This eventually led to a heated 1960 election, where civil rights supporter John F. Kennedy won. The people had spoken, and by this point it was clear most people wanted equality for all. It took two years, but Kennedy came through on his promise and made his “Civil Rights Address. ” This address let to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which ended segregation and promised equality to all. It did not end racism, but it was a huge step in creating our better, still imperfect, modern world. Kennedy’s speech expedited this process greatly, and improved America for all Americans.
The “Civil Rights Address” was a pivotal speech in the Civil Rights Movement, and is one of the reasons John F. Kennedy is known as a civil rights leader. It put rhetoric to great use, and it is a clear example of rhetoric that changed the world. The 1960s were a tumultuous time for all people, and almost everybody appreciates them because of the great strives Americans made in such a short time. Kennedy was one of those Americans, and in the great “Civil Rights Address” he used his charm, tone, ability to create a sense of unity, and overall stellar rhetoric to allow all Americans to feel just a little freer.
