On June 10, 1963, President Kennedy gave a commencement speech at American University that has been called the "Peace Now" speech (see the link below for the full text of the speech). In his speech, Kennedy spoke about the need for world peace given the prospect of total war. He said, "I speak of peace, therefore, as the necessary rational end of rational men." He stated that world peace was an attainable goal and that...
On June 10, 1963, President Kennedy gave a commencement speech at American University that has been called the "Peace Now" speech (see the link below for the full text of the speech). In his speech, Kennedy spoke about the need for world peace given the prospect of total war. He said, "I speak of peace, therefore, as the necessary rational end of rational men." He stated that world peace was an attainable goal and that the United States must pursue peace with the Soviets. While Kennedy stated that the United States did not embrace Communism, he believed that Americans were linked to the Soviets through their mutual hatred of war. He also announced his decision to meet with Soviet Premier Khrushchev to ban nuclear tests in the atmosphere. This speech came the year after the United States was pushed to the brink of nuclear war with the Soviets during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
Another famous speech about American pacifism was Jane Addams's July 9, 1915, address at Carnegie Hall upon her return from the Congress of Women for Peace at the Hague ("Address of Miss Jane Addams, Delivered at Carnegie Hall," Friday July 9, 1915). In her speech, Addams, a famous figure in the settlement movement during the Progressive Era, said that armies provided their soldiers with different types of "dope" before ordering them to go on bayonet charges. She said the British gave their soldiers rum, for example. Her remarks sparked a controversy in which people believed she was maligning the courage of soldiers, though her intent had been to merely state the unnaturalness of killing others.
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