- I'm Caroline Kennedy. May 29th would be my
father's 100th birthday. I've thought about him and
missed him every day of my life. But growing up without him was made easier thanks to all the people who
kept him in their hearts, who told me that he inspired them to work and fight and believe in a better world. To give something back to this country that has given so much to so many. I remember hiding underneath
my father's Oval Office desk when I was little, and sitting
on his lap on the Honey Fitz. He would point out the white
shark and the purple shark who always followed the
boat, although I could never quite see them. He said they especially
liked to eat socks, and would have his friends
throw their socks overboard, which I loved. President Kennedy inspireda generation that transformed America. They marched for justice, they
served in the Peace Corps, in the inner cities, in outer space. His brothers carried on that
work, fighting against poverty, violence and war,
championing human rights, health care and immigration. As my father said in
his inaugural address, this work will not be
finished in our lifetime. It's up to us to continue
to pass these values on to our children and grandchildren. - One of the defining relationships in my life is with
someone I have never met. My grandfather, President John F. Kennedy. It's a little odd to be connected
to someone you don't know, especially when everyone
else has access to much of the same information
about him that you do. Throughout my life, I
have been able to connect with my grandfather through
the study of history, which I know he loved,
both studying his life and studying the eras and
patterns that fascinated him. To me, that is where he lives, as a historical figure rooted in the past but also as a person connected to so much of what came after him,
through his writings and from the stories my
relatives have told me. But while my grandfather
had reverence for the past and the lessons it could
impart, he also knew that America was a country
where change was possible, where we aren't bound solely by tradition if we understand the past
with which we are breaking. - I'm inspired by my
grandfather's sense of equality, his courage in naming the
injustices in American society, and his call for action. His words and his ideals
mean so much to me and to the world we live in today. But we are still faced
with tremendous inequality and injustice, from voting rights to our criminal justice system
and mass incarceration. My grandfather would be
proud of how far we've come as a nation since 1963, but
he'd have been the first to tell us that we have a long way to go. I hope everyone,
regardless of age or party, will remember what President Kennedy told America decades ago. This nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds. It was founded on the
principle that all men are created equal, and that
the rights of every man are diminished when the rights
of one man are threatened. - President Kennedy was
elected on a platform of challenges and not promises. Not for what he would
offer the American people as president, but what
he would ask of them. My favorite speech is the
one that President Kennedy gave at Rice University,
where he makes the case for sending a man to the moon. He said that that challenge
was worthwhile not because it would be easy but
because it would be so hard. My generation will inherit
a complicated world, with countless unsolved problems. Climate change is just one of them, but it's the type of change
I think my grandfather would have been energized
about and eager to solve. He cared deeply about the environment, about science and technology, and he recognized that only
if America leads the world in solving global
problems can we make sure that it's done right. From that speech at Rice,
and from the space program he helped launch, we can learn a simple but important lesson, great
challenges are opportunities, and it is each generation's responsibility to meet those challenges
with the same combination of energy, faith and devotion
that President Kennedy and his contemporaries
displayed decades ago. I know that we're up to the task, but we have to demand
action from our leaders, and we have to vote. - As his family, we're so
proud of what my father stood for during his life, and how powerful those
values remain today. I hope that these reflections
on President Kennedy's life and his influence on those
of us who share his legacy will encourage people
across the United States to look at challenges in
their own corner of the world and seek solutions that heal, lift up the forgotten
and make a difference in the lives of others. Thanks for watching.
