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Phase 3 Individual Project Shanta Murphy Colorado Technical University Online HIST125- 1104B- 08 October 24, 2011 There were quite a few things that have occurred during World War II American history that one could focus on. From all of the events we have to choose from, I am going to briefly describe the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the events surrounding September 11, 2001. Although tragic, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy led to what was started as a great act.
Now that the event that occurred on September 11, 2001 has taken place, I’m sure looking back on the events that led up to the tragic event, one would have paid much more attention to and taken caution. Being a service member myself, the event has made a major impact on my life. Born May 29, 1979, John F. Kennedy would become the first president born in the 20th century. Kennedy was a service member in the Navy in which he served during World War II. During his time in the Navy, Kennedy was given command during which his boat was destroyed, throwing himself and fellow crew into the water.
Kennedy swam for four hours, being able to save himself and a crewman. From doing so, Kennedy aggravated his back. But there was some good that came from the journey through the water. Kennedy received the Purple Heart and Navy and Marine Corps Medal (About. com, 2011). Kennedy ran for the House of Representative and was reelected twice. After which, he was elected Senator from 1953- 1961. Kennedy was nominated to run for president in 1960, against Richard Nixon, who t the time was Vice President for Eisenhower. Kennedy won over the people with his ideas of a “New Frontier”.
Only a few years later, on November 22, 1963 at 12:30 p. m. , President Kennedy was assassinated as the presidential motorcade passed the School Book Depository Building in Dallas, Texas (Career Education Corporation, 2010; M. U. S. E. ). Word spread quickly. Shortly after being pronounced dead, President Kennedy’s killer, Lee Harvey Oswald, was arrested by Dallas police. President Kennedy was known more for his symbolic reputation than his judicial activities, with his time in office being called “Camelot” (About. com, 2011). His honorable governance of Civil Rights as an essential part of the movements’ subsequent success. Although times have drastically turned now, during his term, President Kennedy was able to get an increase in minimum wage and better Social Security benefits. President Kennedy also created the Peace Corps. Even though the programs did not pass Congress until after President Kennedy was assassinated, he also was the original proposer of the Civil Rights Act. After President Lyndon Johnson became president and continued to work the programs, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed.
Also on his President Kennedys behalf, President Johnson created the Warren Commission to investigate the assassination of President Kennedy (John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum). The catastrophic event that occurred on September 11, 2001 left a mark in plenty of Americans hearts. On that sad day, two planes were crashed into the World Trade Center, claiming several lives. This is what we all know of that day. But there were several things that occurred leading up to that day. For instance, when George W.
Bush took office in January 2001, there were presidential papers that were due to be made public for Ronald Reagan and Vice President George Bush. But when President George W. Bush took office, he postponed the release for 90 days and again pushed back the date leading to September 2001. Instead of the papers being released, President Bush released an Executive Order on November 1, 2001. This Order placed limitations on the public access to the records of former U. S. presidents and vice presidents (Jamie Frater, 2007- 2011). Also during the week before September 11, 2001, there was a change in the stock market as well.
For United Airlines and American Airlines stocks, there were an exceptional number of put options placed. For those that may not be familiar with the stock market, put options are a monetarist agreement involving two parties that will offer the buyer indemnity versus a company’s extreme loss. Purchasing the put options showed that someone is expecting the stock for the said company, in this case American Airline and United Airline, stock to drop. Because of these events that led to September 11, 2001 and the event itself, America has been placed in the bind that we are in today.
The cost of living has drastically gone up, there is hardly any employment available, and it is hard for people who don’t have the funds to find adequate healthcare. Like I previously stated before, this has also affected me, as I am a service member. Being a service member we are at a time of war so we are required to go to Iraq and Afghanistan to fight for our country. Doing this also keeps you away from our families. If these events had not happened, America probably would not be in such a financial crisis as we are at this time.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped out a lot for mankind. Although after the event of September 11, 2001 may have put a curve ball on the benefits of the act, if that event had not happened we would still see where the act had helped us and not affected us in a negative manner. References http://www. historylearningsite. co. uk/1964_civil_rights_act. htm https://campus. ctuonline. edu/courses/HIST125/p3/hub1/hub. html http://americanhistory. about. com/od/johnfkennedy/p/pkennedy. htm http://listverse. com/2010/08/27/10-events-surrounding-september-11/