On this Day: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy

On this day, November 22^nd 1963, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. He was shot three times; once in the neck, once in the back and the fatal shot was to his head.  He was on his way to resolving some conflicts in the Democratic party and while riding in the Presidential limousine he was murdered.  The suspected assassin, Lee Harvey Oswold, was originally arrested for killing a local police office on the same day as the Kennedy assassination. Detectives concluded that he was the lone assassin and arrested him for the crime. However, before he could be trialed and charged he was murdered by Jack Ruby two days after the Kennedy assassination. This has led many people to believe that the assassination of John F Kennedy is part of massive conspiracy as Oswold denied killing anyone and an actual trial never occurred.

During JFK’s Presidency, some of the world most historic events occurred, including the Cuban Missile Crisis, the initiation of the Apollo programme, the early stages of the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights Movement and the construction of the Berlin Wall.  He served in the US Army between 1941 and 1945 as a Lieutenant and was on active duty through the Second World War.  Upon his election as President in 1961, he was the youngest man to ever preside over the United Sates. He preceded President Dwight Eisenhower and was succeeded by President Lyndon B Johnson.

The conspiracy surrounding the assassination of JFK stems from the inconsistencies in the case against Lee Harvey Oswold as the gunman. However, in a recent poll by Fox News, 66% of Americans believe there was a conspiracy to murder President Kennedy, while 74% believe it be a cover up. The main conspiracy being that there were two gunmen. Some conspiracy theorists and dedicated researchers of the case write how witnesses to the murder were threatened by FBI agents not to reveal what they had observed on the day, one such witness a colleague of Oswold’s at the Texas Book Repository. According to further investigations, many of the witnesses of the crime conveniently died shortly after the threats from the FBI and, according to some theorists, were murdered to prevent them uncovering what they knew about the crime.

USA Today cites 6 different conspiracy theories which point to specific organisations or individuals as being behind the murder. They include the CIA, the Mafia and the Soviets as well as Vice President Lyndon Johnson and as mentioned above the two shooters theory. Some more far out conspiracies include aliens and a mysterious man with an umbrella, although these have largely been debunked.

There are many theories associated with the JFK assassination and whether or not Lee Harvey Oswold was solely responsible will remain a complete mystery. Investigation and theories are always bubbling under the surface but the truth may always be kept a secret.

Further Reading in the Information Store

JFK: The Making of a Modern President – Book Zone – Shelved at 973.922

Apollo: Race to the Moon – Book Zone – Shelved at 629.45

The Moon Landing – Book Zone – Shelved at 520

The Vietnam War – Book Zone – Shelved at 959.7043

The Berlin Wall – Book Zone – Shelved at 943.086

The Civil Rights Movement – Book Zone – Shelved at 363