Robert Kennedy’s campaign for the presidency only last a mere 85 days, but his legacy lives on for much longer than any campaign ever could.
85 Days by Jules Witcover documents the hastily put-together presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy. Although his campaign began too late and ended too soon, the lasting impression Bobby left to those he touched would live on far past his untimely death.
The book focuses on Kennedy’s drive to end the racial injustice that still surrounded many parts of the United States while introducing his dark humour and empathetic personality to a wider audience than those close to him.
Throughout the 1960s, racial injustice had reached its boiling point. As attorney general in his brother’s cabinet, Bobby was at first uncertain about taking a stand on civil rights fearing it would affect John F. Kennedy’scampaign for re-election. Realizing that dehumanizing a huge group of people within the United States was could never bring the country together in peace, Bobby made it his duty to fight for racial equality.
Branching out into his own campaign for the presidency, it was inspiring to see who Bobby was on the campaign trail was actually who he was behind the scenes. There was one line that drove home that point: “He identified with people who hurt. Maybe it was because he hurt.”
Obviously having a brother like JFK and the way he died is tragic. By Bobby running for president, he was going to live in Jack’s shadow until he lived up to expectations. Compared to his brother, who aimed towards broadening our ideas, Bobby opened up America’s eyes to the injustice and racism that plagued its own land. Lack of proper education and extremely poor housing conditions in black ghettos would be the basis of his campaign.
There was a drastic difference between Bobby and his brother John; empathy.
Bobby was always more compassionate than his brother, despite his “ruthless” exterior. His actions appealed to some and were disregarded by others, but everyone knew the pain that he went through in losing someone so close to him. There wasn’t a day that Bobby didn’t experience emotional pain and that alone had a huge effect on anyone he met. They knew that he had dealt with loss and that he could feel for the people that had been through injustice within the United States.
Beyond that, he inspired those around him. Anyone he shook hands with or spoke to was immediately captivated by him. Although he could be awkward at times, by the campaign trail he was a complete rockstar.
Bobby reminded everyone so much of John. Not only did he have a similar outlook on the direction America should take towards the future, but looked and spoke like him. He was a painful emphasis on what once was and the vast majority of people in the United States desperately wanted a restoration of power to their Royal Family.
Regardless of how people knew about Bobby, they fell in love almost instantly. His campaign for the presidency only last a mere 85 days, but his legacy lives on for much longer than any campaign ever could. He gave a powerful voice to minorities that had never been heard before by a white politician. Who knows what Bobby could have accomplished as President of the United States if he was afforded the opportunity.
