I was in Cuba on the day that President Kennedy was assassinated. I can still remember the phone ringing, my mother said hello and then yelled "Mataron a Kennedy", or "they killed Kennedy." Later, my father said that he had been killed in Dallas, Texas. Who would have believed that I'd be living there someday?
Let me congratulate Dallas, its government and citizens for a great ceremony. Mayor Rawlings delivered a nice speech. I loved what David McCullough, historian and author of that wonderful Truman biography said:
Dallas has carried this terrible burden for 50 years. Dallas did not kill JFK. It was Lee Harvey Oswald."It was an exciting time. He talked of all that needed to be done, of so much that mattered - equal opportunity, unity of purpose, education, the life of the mind and spirit, art, poetry, service to one's country, the courage to move forward into the future, the cause of peace on earth."
We look back to remember a sad day but it's also time to move on, as Steve Blow wrote:
Yes, it's time to move on."Fifty years out, the rest of the world can now see Dallas in proper historical context. It's time for us to see ourselves in that way, too.
A recent symposium here offered fascinating discussion, but I hope to never again see an event with this one's focus: "Understanding Tragedy - The Impact of the JFK Assassination on Dallas."
Enough. We really need to get over ourselves, horrible as that day was for the city. The world has moved on. We should, too.
Many young adults across the country don't even know that Kennedy died here. For lots of kids, the only Oswald they know is a blue octopus on the Nick Jr. network.
Not for one minute am I suggesting that we minimize our history. If anything, I'm saying it's time to fully embrace it - but as history, not as a wound to be endlessly examined.
Let's use this 50th anniversary to shift the focus forevermore from ourselves and our hurt to the life and legacy of John F. Kennedy.
His presidency stood for looking ahead, not back, for focusing on nation, not self.
In Dallas, Texas, too."
P.S. You can listen to my show (Canto Talk).