Question

"Martin Luther King dedicated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings. He died in the cause of that effort. In this difficult day, in this difficult time for the United States, its perhaps well to ask what kind of nation we are and what direction we want to move in. For those of you who are black, considering the evidence evidently is that there white people who were responsible, you can be filled with bitterness, and with hatred, and a desire for revenge."

-John F. Kennedy

What does Kennedy state explicity, and what can you infer about Kennedy's feelings for MLK Jr. from reading his speech? Use details from the text to support your answer

Answer 1

Explicitly, we can tell that John F. Kennedy believes that Martin Luther King was a man of peace. This is said by, “ . . . decimated his life to love and to justice between fellow human beings.” We can infer that Kennedy admired his work for the black community. We get this by Kennedy saying those who are black could hold anger for his murder. This would mean that Kennedy would understand the frustration. The hatred.