Robert Kennedy

“I dream of things that never were, and ask why not?” by Robert F. Kennedy.

The United States was engaged in an unpopular war halfway around the world.  Richard Nixon was well on his way to claiming the Republican nomination and the Democrats were locked in a struggle to determine whether to continue the policies of the sitting Democratic president or to choose a candidate who opposed the war and other key administration policies.  The year 1968: forty-five years ago a candidate was trying to convince the nation that a new way of conducting its business was in order.  That was Senator Robert F. Kennedy.  On June 6, 1968, Robert F. Kennedy won the California presidential primary defeating Democratic Sen. Eugene McCarthy.  That night, Kennedy thanked a crowd of supporters at the ballroom of his headquarters hotel, the Ambassador.  After finishing his speech to the cheers of his audience, he stepped down from the podium, not knowing that an assassin awaited him.  He died the next day.  America was stunned by the tragedy, many mourning a leader they had hoped would have gone on to the White House to carry on the tradition of another slain Kennedy- his brother, John.  We have Thurston Clarke’s book “The Last Campaign”, which takes a look at the engaging evocative glory of Bobby Kennedy’s 82 days of running for the Presidency. We have the 1967 title, “To Seek a Newer World”, a powerful collection of essays from Robert Kennedy, which grew out of his speeches, travel and experiences. The essays address what RFK perceived to be the challenges of the time and they provide a fascinating insight into the President he might have been. We also have his worlds on audio CD. You can hear the important speeches of his life. These are just some of the items we have on Bobby Kennedy; check out our display case for some unique items from the 1968 Campaign.