Robert Francis Kennedy gave one of the most important speeches of American history in the twentieth century. This speech, given just hours after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. was one that had a tremendous impact on those who listened. Even today this speech has a timeless aura about it considering that this country still faces racial tension and violence every day. The speech was given on April 4th, 1968, on the same day of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., Senator Robert Kennedy had just spoken at Notre Dame and Ball State University when he learned that King had been assassinated. At the time, Senator Kennedy was campaigning to become the Democratic presidential candidate. When he spoke at the two universities he brought up the main issues of the country at the time, the Vietnam war and racism. Kennedy spoke about the issues in front of nine-thousand or more college students, and he was …show more content…
to the assassination of his own brother, John F. Kennedy on November 22, 1963. Five years prior to Dr. King but still very difficult for the Robert to talk about. In fact, he rarely discussed his brother’s death which gives it more weight in bringing it up at this crucial moment. He states that he knows what Black America feels at the hands of a white man because his own brother was also killed by a white man. Kennedy stresses that he understands what the country is going through and he understands the state of division that the nation is in, and he invites the country along a path to unity and peace. At the end of this speech, he tells the people to go home, to stay out of the streets, and to most importantly say a prayer for Martin Luther King Jr. and his family, and to also say a prayer for our great country. The speech was a mere four minutes and fifty-five seconds, but it had a great impact on the country and made so many people realize what needed to be done to combat hatred in this