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President Kennedy's Address to the American Society of Newspaper Editors, 4/20/61 (TNC:197)

Jun 06, 2021
from Washington DC CBS News presents a speech by John F Kennedy President of the United States The

president

will speak to members of the American Society of Newspaper Editors holding their 39th annual convention at which the Statler Hilton Hotel was originally going to lunch the director executive with the

editors

but earlier today he changed his plans presumably due to the international situation and because he wanted to dedicate more time to his speech the

president

met with his cabinet during the morning the session had been scheduled some time ago but it is understood that the Cuban president situation was discussed mr.
president kennedy s address to the american society of newspaper editors 4 20 61 tnc 197
Kennedy's speech this afternoon is expected to

address

both the Cuban and ocean situations. The agreement suggests that the president's keynote

address

will be Turner Catledge, editor in chief of the New York Times and president of the publishing

society

. Now here is mr. Catholic ladies and gentlemen, the president of the College of the United States, members of the American Society,

newspaper

editors

, ladies and gentlemen, the president of a great democracy like ours and the editors of great

newspaper

s like yours. Oh, a common obligation to the people, an obligation to present! the facts to present them frankly and present them in perspective, without obligation I have decided in the last 24 hours to briefly discuss at this time the recent events in Cuba, on that unhappy Island as in so many other settings in the world. the fight for freedom the news has gotten worse instead of better.
president kennedy s address to the american society of newspaper editors 4 20 61 tnc 197

More Interesting Facts About,

president kennedy s address to the american society of newspaper editors 4 20 61 tnc 197...

I have emphasized before that this was a fight of Cuban patriots against a Cuban dictator, although we could not be expected to hide our sympathies, we made it clear repeatedly that the armed forces of this country would not intervene in any way, any unilateral American intervention in the absence of a external attack against ourselves or against an ally would have been contrary to our traditions and our international obligations, but let us note that our moderation is not inexhaustible if it ever seemed that The inter-American doctrine of non-interference simply conceals or excuses a policy of non-action . If the nations of this hemisphere do not fulfill their commitments against external communist penetration, then I want it to be clearly understood that this government will not hesitate to fulfill its main objectives. obligations that are the security of our nation, if that time were to come, we do not intend to be lectured about the intervention of those whose character was forever stamped on the bloody streets of Budapest, nor would we expect or accept the same result as this small group.
president kennedy s address to the american society of newspaper editors 4 20 61 tnc 197
The refugees Galán's Cubans must have known that they were determined, as they were, despite everything, to continue with their brave attempts to recover the freedom of their islands, but Cuba is not an island in itself and our concern does not end with mere expressions of non-intervention o I regret that this is not the first time in ancient or recent history that a small group of freedom fighters have faced the armor of totalitarianism. It is not the first time that communist tanks have overwhelmed brave men and women fighting to redeem the independence of their homeland. nor is it in any way the final episode of the eternal struggle of freedom against tyranny anywhere in the world, including Cuba itself, sir.
president kennedy s address to the american society of newspaper editors 4 20 61 tnc 197
Castro has said they were mercenaries, according to press reports. The final message conveyed by the refugee forces on the beach came from the rebel commander when asked if he wished to be evacuated and his response was: "I will never leave this country which is not the mercenary answer, now it has gone to the mountains to join many other guerrillas who are equally determined that the dedication of those who gave their lives is not forgotten and that Cuba should not be abandoned in the hands of the communists and we do not intend to Abet inactive the Cuban people have not yet pronounced their final piece and do not I have doubts that they and the Revolutionary Council headed by Dr.
Kay Dona and the family members of the revolutionary council, as the doctor informed me yesterday, who are involved in the island, will continue to defend a free and independent Cuba in the meantime. We will accept Mr. Castro's attempts to blame this nation for the hatred they once supported now refer to its repression, but from this sobering episode there are useful lessons that we must all learn; The forces of communism should not be underestimated in Cuba or anywhere else in the world The advantages of a police state Its use of massive tariffs and arrests to prevent the spread of free dissent cannot be overlooked by those who hope for fall of every fanatical tyrant If the self-discipline of the free cannot match the ionic discipline of the clenched fist in economics, politics, science and all other types of struggle, as well as the military, and the danger of freedom will continue to increase Secondly, it is clear that this nation in concert with all the free nations of this hemisphere must adopt an increasingly closer and realistic look at the threat of external communist intervention and domination in Cuba;
The American people are not complacent about Turkish iron curtain tanks and planes less than 90 miles from their coast, a nation the size of Cuba is less a threat to our survival than a base for subverting the survival of other free nations. throughout the hemisphere; It is not primarily our interest or our security, but theirs, that is presented today with the great appearance that it represents. For their sake and ours, we must show our will, the evidence is clear and it is too late, we and our Latin friends will have to face the fact that we can no longer postpone the real question of the survival of freedom in this hemisphere .
On that issue, unlike perhaps others, there can be no middle ground, together we must build a hemisphere where freedom can flourish and where any free nation under external attack of any kind can be assured that all our resources are ready to respond to any request for third assistance and, finally, it is clearer than ever that we face a relentless struggle in all corners of the world that goes far beyond the clash of armies or even nuclear weapons: the armies They are there and in large numbers nuclear weapons are there, but they mainly serve as the shield behind which subversive infiltration and a series of other tactics constantly advanced, eliminating vulnerable areas one by one in situations that do not allow our own power of armed intervention. , is the hallmark of this offensive power and discipline and deception, the legitimate discontent of a yearning people. is exploited, the legitimate symbols of self-determination are used, but once in power all conversations about discontent are repressed, all self-determination disappears and the promise of a revolution of hope is betrayed, as in Cuba, in a reign of terror, those who want automatically staged instruction.
The riots in the streets of free nations over the efforts of a small group of young children to regain their freedom should remind us of the long list of refugees who now cannot return to Hungary, to North Korea, to North Vietnam, to Germany East, to Poland or to any other country. From the other lands from which a constant flow of refugees springs up in eloquent testimony of the cruel oppression that now dominates their homeland, we dare not stop seeing the insidious nature of this new and deeper struggle, we dare not stop seeing grasp new concepts. the new tools the new sense of urgency that we will need to fight it whether in Cuba or South Vietnam and we do not fail to realize that this fight takes place every day without fanfare in thousands of towns and markets day and night and in the everyone's classrooms around the world the message of Cuba the dismissals of the growing din of communist voices in Asia and Latin America these messages are all the same the complacent the self-indulgent the soft societies are about to be swept away with the rubble of history only the strong only the hardworking, only the determined, only the brave, only the visionary who determined the true nature of our struggle, cannot possibly survive, there is no greater task that this country or this administration faces, no other challenge deserves more all our efforts and energy for as long as we have set our eyes on. about traditional military needs, about armies prepared to cross borders, about missiles ready to fly now, it should be clear that this is no longer now that our security can be lost, to the east, little by little, country by country, without firing a single missile or cross a single border we intend to take advantage of this lesson we intend to reexamine and reorient our forces of all kinds our tactics and our institutions here in this community we intend to intensify our efforts for a fight in many ways more difficult than war where disappointment will accompany us to I am often convinced that we in this country and in the free world possess the necessary resources and the additional skill and strength that comes from the belief in the freedom of man and I am equally convinced that history will record the fact that This bitter struggle reached its climax in the late 1950s and early 1960s, let me make clear as President of the United States that I am determined that our system survive and succeed, regardless of the cost and danger.
Thank you.

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