Irving Sunrise Rotary – Irving Sunrise Rotary Fall 2024 Auction
Auction Ends: Nov 13, 2024 09:00 PM CST

Collectibles

Kennedy Election Pin- reproduction

Item Number
111
Opening Bid
2 USD
Next Minimum Bid
USD
Time Left
8d 14h
Online Close
2024-11-13 22:00:00.0

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Item Description

Another reproduction from 1972, but such a classic  pin.  If you look back at the history books, it was the students all across the United State's campuses that made the biggest impact for choice of Kennedy becoming president.  How did that come to pass?  Students were rebelling against the norm and it didn't hurt that Kennedy was a more handsome and younger candidate for President.  It was also the beginning of the Civil Rights movement with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr at the forefront protesting the issues that black Americans faced in every day life.

Kennedy was nominated by the Democratic Party at the national convention on July 15, 1960, and he named Senator Lyndon B. Johnson as his vice-presidential running mate.  The issue that dominated the election was the rising Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union.  This is what the American public was focused on the most in their lives.  However, a crucial issue in the 1960 campaign was that Kennedy faced the challenge of promoting policies that white southern Democrats supported while, at the same time, courting black voters away from the Republican Party.  On October 19, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., along with students, was protesting local segregation ordinances in Georgia and they were sent to jail for trespassing. King was sentenced to six months of hard labor for violating his probation on a previous misdemeanor. After hearing of King’s sentence, Senator Kennedy and his brother, Robert, called Georgia governor, Ernest Vandiver, and petitioned King’s release. Senator Kennedy called Coretta Scott King, MLK’s wife, to offer his help. Meanwhile, Robert Kennedy called the judge and was able to convince him to release King. The Kennedys’ role in King’s release quickly spread in the Black community. Martin Luther King publicly changed his support from Nixon to Kennedy thus securing the Black vote along with the student vote for Senator John F. Kennedy.

Item Special Note

Item shown is exact item up for auction---shipping charges apply if not a local pick up

 

Donated by Bob Whitney-- Rotarian

Donated By:

Bob Whitney-Rotarian