The Assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy - Essay Example

JFK assassination This is a study about the assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the 35th president of the United States. More specifically, the theory will analyze the conspiracy surrounding this assassination. In addition, the study focuses on the reasons why the president was killed, by uncovering the likely circumstances that led to his assassination and the people involved in the murder. The assassination of JFK took place on 22 November 1963 in Dallas, Texas when he was riding in a motorcade. Lee Harvey Oswald is the man believed to have shot and killed the president. Lee was arrested for the murder of Kennedy and was taken into custody, but he did stay long enough before Jack Ruby shot him. Kennedy was a charismatic leader whose assassinationhas remained a debatable issue several decades after his death. Many years after his death, it has not been possible for the world to know who gave the official orders to kill him and what their motives were. Those who witnessed the shooting of Kennedy have never come to an agreement on where the shots were from, therefore making the issue more controversial. There have been further disagreements with some people arguing that there was more than one gunman involved in the shooting, while others conclude that it is impossible to know the exact location of the shooters and the number of shots fired. In the theories raised about the murder of Kennedy, arguments revolve around the role Oswald had to play in the killing. Theorists believe that he was not solely responsible for the murder on grounds that he did it on behalf of someone else. Oswald was framed by those who responsible for the murder so that they could cover up their involvement. Those alleged to have participated in the assassination include the CIA and the American Mafia (Plouty et al, 2011 p 233). A number of circumstances are believed to have caused the assassination of Kennedy. To start with, he came from an elite family that was involved in business internationally since he was young. Therefore, his election to the presidential office was because of the monetary power of his family, and with some help from the Mafia. When he became the president, Kennedy detached himself from the Mafiaand the elite community. This led to a lot of criticism fromthe Mafia, and it was the probable reason as to why they planned to assassinate him (West and Vernon, 2011). Another controversial issue leading to the assassination of Kennedy was the Bay of Pigs invasion in1961. The attempt by the Cuban exiles to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro was not successful. This was because President Kennedy declined to permit American troops and the CIA to attack Cuba. After the failure of the attack, the deputy director of CIA Charles accused Kennedy of being a traitor. As a result, the CIA was unhappy with Kennedy and they had to look for alternatives; they therefore sought the services of the Mafia to kill Castro (Plouty et al, 2011 p 234). After two years of his tenure as the president of the United States, Kennedy faced great opposition from both the democrats and the republicans in the congress. Most of the legislations that he proposed were rejected, and this meant that he had less support in the congress in his position as the president. More so, his involvement in the affairs of Cuba was threatening his future in the American politics. The Republicans used the Cuban issue to object to the president and planned to assassinate him (Gibson, 2000 p 8). The Vietnam War had a part to play in the assassination of President Kennedy. Kennedy approved the National security memorandum, which declared America’s intention to pull out of the war by withdrawing their troops. Kennedy’s decision to withdraw from Vietnam was objected as it signified that America would cease to support its allies in the Vietnamese war. Kennedy stood as a threat and consequently there was a plot to assassinate him and end his rule so that America would continue taking part in the Vietnam War. The conspiracy behind this event was that the players in the War wanted the support of America. Kennedy and his brother criticized the organized crime carried out by the Mafia in an attempt to expose the Mafia to the public. The President’s motive was to limit the massive powers of the Mafia. The Mafia was very powerful and they influenced politics as well as public policy in the United States. Revealing their activities to the public meant that their presence and impact in America would no longer be felt.As a result, the Mafia organized an assassination on the president so that they could continue to be influential the same way they were before. The Mafia objected Kennedy’s rule and they had to find a way to stop him from uncovering their deals (Livingstone, 1993 p 642). Conspiracy theories suppose that the assassination of Kennedy was related with his attempt to make amendments to the statutes of the National Labor Relations board. He was also planning to make amendments to the statutes of Internal Revenue. These two amendments would inhibit the exemption of foreign flag shipping from the income taxes of America. By passing these amendments, it meant that the Liberian shipping magnates would be adversely affected. Therefore, Kennedy became a threat to some traders, as he would cost them losses worth billions. There had to be a way to eliminate him before he made the amendments and he was killed three days before passing making these amendments known to the public (West and Vernon, 2011). The cold war is another factor that was responsible for the plot to assassinate President Kennedy. There were differences between him and the CIA, as he wanted to end the spread of communism; an ideology that was strongly supported by the Soviet Union and its allies. Kennedy held secret talks with countries such as Cuba without the awareness of the CIA. This move triggered the CIA to retaliate towards President Kennedy, as he became a possible threat to the dominance and popularity of the CIA (Plouty et al, 2011 p 234). Some suggestions from conspiracy theorists indicate that officials within the government assassinated Kennedy. This is because there were contradictions in the reports compiled by the agencies of the government who carried out investigations regarding the death. Further, the evidence collected by the FBI and other law enforcement agencies at the scene of the murder is not reliable as there is evidence that one man was not capable of assassinating the President without the assistance of the Mafia. The manner in which the assassin was executed also raises a lot of suspicion, as there was no trial prior to his killing. This indicates that the government was trying to cover up something (Livingstone, 1993 p 643). Following the death of the Kennedy, the ‘Warren commission’ was formed to investigate the assassination. The findings of the commission were Oswald was the man solely responsible for the murder of the president. There were clear reasons to indicate the intentions and the motives of the assassin. The commission cannot be relied on because the investigations were conducted within a short period. To make the matter worse, the assassin was shot and killed while being escorted by the police. Oswald could not have killed the president without support. Besides, there is likelihoodthat the killer of the assassin was hired to silence the only person who knew the truth. The report released by the commission indicated that the two drawings of the President’s wounds were inaccurate (Livingstone, 1993 p 645). The assassination of Kennedy is an event that has been altered in the context of the culture of the United States of America. People fail to understand why the president chose to ride in an open motorcade instead of having the full protection of the secret service.The alteration of the murder of the President is an easier way of covering up for the crimes committed by officials serving in the government (Gibson, 2000 p 7). Over the years, the government has been involved in numerous crimes whose truth they want to hide from the public. The plot to keep the truth regarding the president a secret is an attempt to indicate that the government had nothing to do with the assassination. By convincing the public that officials from the government were not part of the plot to kill the President, it has been easier for the politicians to evade accusations and criticisms from the people (West and Vernon, 2011). In conclusion, the assassination of President J.F. Kennedy is an event surrounded by a lot of controversy. Americans have never come to terms with the murder of the president. The event raised a lot of suspicion because of the public execution of the assassin. Work cited: Gibson, D.The Kennedy assassination Cover up. Kroshka books (2000). pp 6-10. Plouty, F.L et al. JFK: The CIA, Vietnam, and the Plot to Assassinate John F. Kennedy. Skyhorse Publishing (2011). pp 230-235. Livingstone, H.E.JFK's Assassination: Conspiracy, Forensic Science, and Common Sense.Carroll & Graf (1993), pp 642-648. West, J.H and Vernon, R.G. JFK murder solved: why was JFK killed? (2011). Retrieved 11Nov 2011 http://www.jfkmurdersolved.com/index1.htm Read More