Kennedy and King: The President, the Pastor, and the Battle over Civil Rights

by Steven Levingston

Kennedy and King traces the emergence of two of the twentieth century's greatest leaders, their powerful impact on each other and on the shape of the civil rights battle between 1960 and 1963. These two men from starkly different worlds profoundly influenced each other's personal development. Kennedy's hesitation on civil rights spurred King to greater acts of courage, and King inspired Kennedy to finally make a moral commitment to equality. As America still grapples with the legacy of slavery and the persistence of discrimination, Kennedy and King is a vital, vivid contribution to the literature of the Civil Rights Movement.

Genres: History, Politics, Nonfiction, Biography, American History, Historical, Audiobook

352 pages, ebook

First published June 6, 2017

About the author

Steven Levingston is a former senior book editor of the Washington Post and author of "Barack and Joe," "Kennedy and King", and "Little Demon in the City of Light". He has lived and worked in Beijing, Hong Kong, New York, Paris, and Washington and reported and edited for the Wall Street Journal and International Herald Tribune.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A man does what he must, in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressure and that is the basis of all human morality.

Over the last few days I've heard people repeatedly say "This country is better than this"

But Is it?

The events of this book took place over fifty years ago and yet they also took place over the weekend.

Maybe America isnt better than this. Maybe this is America.

America is judged on its actions. Around the world we are seen as a beacon of democracy. Our leaders are seen as a reflection of our values. I believe that to be true. In 1960 the country picked a President they saw as a reflection of the country's values. President Kennedy was that leader. The New Frontier as it was called was young(Kennedy is still our youngest President) vibrant, and seen as more inclusive. African Americans who at the time voted mostly Republican voted in large numbers for Kennedy. Part of what motivated African Americans to vote in mass for Kennedy was Kennedys attempt in the last weeks of the campaign to win the release of Dr. Martin Luther King from jail.

Dr. King was not a fan of Kennedy or any other politician but Jack Kennedy's call to Coretta Scott King started a conversation between the two men that would continue on/off from election day to Dallas.

President Kennedy was not a moral leader on the issue of Civil Rights until he was pushed by Dr. King, Jackie Robinson(who by the way didn't stand for the National Anthem), Harry Belafonte, and his brother Robert Kennedy. Jack Kennedy was man of his time. He wasnt racist but he didn't understand the African American cause either. Seeing pictures and video of The Klan and the police beating people in the street moved him to demand change.

A real President is a moral leader. A real President knows the difference between right and wrong.

Kennedy and King is a must read especially in the current climate we live in. This book is gripping and moving. Dr. King showed moral courage in his fight for Civil Rights.

The fact that the "man" who currently lives in the White House shares more in common with Bull Connor(Google him) and George Wallace is a sad indictment of this country and its people.

I recommend this book to everyone but especially those who see Neo Nazis as fine people.

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first book I read in 2018. This subject is not new or foreign to me in the least bit. It was released last year but all the same I knew I had to read it the first time I laid eyes on it. Suffice to say I was not in the least bit disappointed.

John Kennedy is my hero. There - I've said it, I've put it out there. There is nothing that anyone can say that would make me hate him or stop idolizing him...ever. (OK, the fact that he cheated on Jackie upsets me to no end but I've managed to still find a way to worship him, I just do it on my own terms is all) I think the one thing that angers me regarding JFK's stance on Civil Rights was just why in the world did he have to be so passive-aggressive towards it? Many historians that I've read say that he was only trying to work with the Legislative branch to get his programs passed and didn't want to upset the apple cart and fan the latent flames of racism that were so prevalent within the House and Senate at the time.

Martin Luther King on the other hand - whoa Baby! This was a man who lived each day as he preached, nonviolent to the core. If anything what I admire deeply in Dr. King is his dogged determination to keep on keeping on no matter what the cost or what the naysayers say. He wanted President Kennedy so badly to create and pass as he called it "the Second Emancipation Proclamation" no matter how or when he just wanted it done NOW. In a way, was Dr. King oblivious to the way the laws were made but nonetheless it was amazing to see just how he fit into this story.

The entire run of the JFK-MLK relationship is here. It starts with Kennedy trying to get an endorsement out of the Civil Rights leader during the campaign of 1960 and goes all the way through chronologically to the 1963 March on Washington where after his immortal speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial King meets with Kennedy in the Cabinet Room at the White House. For me, it was fascinating to read about the back stories to some of the now iconic moments of the Movement: the Freedom Rides, the Oxford riots, the Birmingham Campaign and to see just how exactly they were handled by each man.

Not the greatest book I've read on JFK or the Movement but it's up there. Now I want to read Branch's King trilogy and McWhorter's "Carry Me Home."

[Joy D · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book captures the complicated relationship between two larger-than-life figures from the 1960s: Martin Luther King, Jr. and John F. Kennedy. On the surface, the two had little in common. Kennedy came from Boston, the son of wealth and privilege. King was born in the racially segregated South, the son and grandson of ministers. But there are also similarities. Both were highly educated, charismatic leaders with excellent public speaking skills. This book traces the history of the Civil Rights movement through the intersecting lives of these two men. It portrays Kennedy’s gradual acceptance of King’s message, resulting in his endorsement of new Civil Rights legislation.

Along the way, the author highlights the contributions of Harry Belafonte, Robert Kennedy, Jackie Robinson, and other key players. He recounts major events, mostly in chronological order. The book is structured in alternating chapters reflecting the viewpoints of King and Kennedy. King comes across as determined and focused. His strategy of non-violent protest and civil disobedience to unfair laws led to confrontations which could not be ignored.

Kennedy at first reflects the political worries of a candidate seeking election and trying not to alienate a constituency. King keeps after him and his reluctance is eventually convinced to act through King’s persistence and the need to address the rising violence in the South.

This book is not a detailed biography of King or Kennedy, nor is it a complete history of Civil Rights; however, it touches on many important issues that are still relevant today. I think this book provides a good starting point for those who have not read extensively about Kennedy, King, or Civil Rights. It is also beneficial for understanding the history of race relations in the United States.

[Porter Broyles · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do not understand why JFK is held in such high regards when it comes to the Civil Rights battle. I know this is not going to be a popular stand, but Bobby Kennedy and LBJ fought harder for Civil Rights than JFK ever did!

Kennedy was not a man of action or lead by his convictions. In 1954, he was the only senator not to vote on the censure of his family friend Joseph McCarthy. While every other Democrat voted to censure McCarthy, Kennedy did not (he didn't vote due to back pain). Shortly thereafter, he wrote his Pulitzer prize winning book “Profiles in Courage.” (A book that probably only won the Pulitzer due to his father’s influence.) Levingston postulates that JFK was inspired to write the book because of his failure to condemn McCarthyism.

Prior to the 1960 election, Kennedy’s track record was so weak that most Civil Rights leaders thought that Nixon would be the better choice. This changed at the last moment when JFK called to MLK’s wife while King was in prison and Bobby Kennedy, acting on his own, worked to obtain MLK’s freedom.

After elected, JFK stood on the sideline on race issues. He did not act or do anything of substance to help the black community. He made some minor changes in his immediate surrounding (JFK clearly did not have negative views of black Americans, but he was unable to take a public stand on their behalf.)

In his first years as president, he had numerous opportunities to speak out on Civil Rights, but did not. As the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation approached, Civil Rights leaders pushed the President to make a “second Emancipation Proclamation” concerning segregation. While Kennedy appeared to be open to the idea (probably wanted to personally) he lacked to courage to do so.

Having missed the opportunity, he sought to make amends by celebrating Lincoln’s birthday at the White House by inviting a number of Civil Rights leaders. When one, who was not invited, showed up with his white wife, Kennedy freaked out. JFK was worried how having a mixed-race couple at the White House would be viewed in South. He threatened the photographers and told them not to take any pictures of the mixed race couple---or to let them be photographed with the Kennedy's. Jackie made a token appearance and left the celebration.

Incident after incident left JFK speechless.

It wasn’t until June of 1963, 5 months before his death, that JFK finally took a stand on the issue of segregation---but that was only after public sentiment started to change due to acts of violence against Civil Rights protestors were caught on film. JFK was essentially forced to respond to violence in Birmingham Alabama and took a stand. While his change of heart appears to have been sincere, some Civil Rights leaders saw it as too little too late.

Kennedy empathized with the black community and made proposals for several pieces of legislation. Left to their own devices, those pieces of legislation would have (like virtually every other Civil Rights bill in the previous century) died on the vine. Kennedy lacked the political savy or connections to push the bills through the Semate.

After his death, his successor, LBJ, would masterfully use JFK’s legacy to push the bills through Congress.

I’ve been wanting to read this book to discover what I had missed in the story. Why JFK is seen as the champion of the Civil Rights movement---a title that Bobby Kennedy or LBJ seem more worthy of.

Having finished this book, I have to conclude that the only thing Kennedy really did was empathize with the plight of Black America and to make a few speeches shortly before his death. I do not want to undermine or underappreciate the importance of the President empathizing with the black plight, but JFK was not a profile in courage.

I enjoyed the book. While I was familiar with most of the issues discussed, it was good to see how King/Kennedy interacted. The book is a solid introduction to the Civil Rights movement and it is well written.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finished: 01 November 2017
Genre: non-ficiton, history
Score: A
Author: Steven Levingston
Title: Kennedy and King
Published: 2017



Quick Scan:
Kennedy and King traces the emergence of two of the 20th C 's greatest leaders
their powerful impact on each other and
...on the shape of the civil rights battle between 1960 and 1963.
These two men from  different worlds
...profoundly influenced each other's personal development.


Conclusion:
I read and listened to this book. The audio brought the story to life with the whisperered voices of Jackie Kennedy and Coretta King, JFK’s Boston Kennedy accent, MLK’s booming preaching voice and Governor John Patterson of Alabama as the snarling white segregationist. This book shone light on the shadows in my own memories of the 1960's. Steven Levingston’s Kennedy and King is masterpiece of historical narrative. Every page sparkles with the storytelling of those turbulent years during the Civil Rights Movement and JFK's election year.
#MustRead….or #MustListen

Last Thoughts
I read and listened to this book. The audio brought the story to life with the whisperered voices...of Jackie Kennedy and Coretta King...JFK's  Boston Kennedy accent...MLK's booming preaching voice of King and....Governor John Patterson of Alabama as the snarling white segregationist.
His strong stand on race earned him the endorsement of the Ku Klux Klan. This book also brought back memories of  the 1960 - 1963 years. As a child still in grammar school....I was just realizing what was happening in politics in America. At the age of 10-11 yr ...my understanding of the violence and...lack of civil rights in the southern states was nihil. This book shone light on the shadows in my memories  that I had...kept after seeing the struggle for civil rights spread out in...Life, Look, and Saturday Evening Post magazines.

[Mehrsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you've read the Taylor Branch histories and other Civil Rights histories, there's not much new here, but this is still a great read about the evolution of these two men. Well, it's more about the evolution of Kennedy than King, but the latter was instrumental in it I suppose. I also don't like histories of Civil Rights written as though the 64 and 65 Acts were a fait complit. Not by a longshot. Still, read this one. And may more come out. Maybe a Johnson and Abernathy or a Johnson and King. Maybe a Nixon and Innis. We need to think more about how to tell the story of civil rights in this country that makes sense.

[Hill Krishnan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a masterpiece indeed!

[Jerry Murch · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read....especially in this political climate. Very good. Gave me a whole new perspective on Kennedy, and even more respect for Dr. King.

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I don't care if the United States gets the first man on the moon, if while this is happening on a crash basis, we dawdle along here on our corner of the earth, nursing our prejudices, flouting our magnificent Constitution, ignoring the central moral problem of our times, and appearing hypocrites to all the world."

**Not exactly apart of the review but if you're interested there is a song that perfectly exemplifies the quote above. Gil Scott-Heron sang a poem "Whitey on the Moon" in 1970 in response to the moon landing in 1969.

Now onto the review:
I would be remiss not to make the obvious connections of the past to what is currently and, if I'm being honest, has always been going on. Whether it be systemic or individual, the legacy of white supremacy is the legacy of America, and while some are shocked by what happened in Charleston, the pardoning of Joe Arpaio, all the hate crimes committed before and after January, I'm not. You might say I'm more aligned with James Baldwin's way of thinking which is, "What else is new?"

Throughout our history up into the present day there have been politicians who were racist and their policies reflected that, and there have been ones who don't hold those angry biases and in fact want to change things but hold back for fear of upsetting those in power and in the voting polls that are loud and proud when white supremacy is challenged. It's only until they stand firmly by their convictions that change can truly happen. Kennedy was one of those presidents.

“He did, in fact, represent about the best that white America had to offer, but this was tragic b/c he did not have empathy.”

In a time when to be racist was the norm. The Kennedy brothers and other white moderates were as close to a sympathetic ear you could hope for. Despite that the young; charismatic Kennedy, in large part, won the presidency by garnering the (Northern) African-American vote. He made promises to pass legislation and be a champion of Civil Rights far exceeding his predecessors. However, when he got into office he felt an obligation to maintain order rather than justice, for fear of upsetting the racists who supported him so long as he kept his mouth shut. This snail-like pace caused many black activists, most notably Martin Luther King Jr. to have a hot and cold relationship with the new administration.

In this book you get the detailed accounts of how each painful step to move forward by MLK and others was pushed back not only by the obvious segregationists, but an administration that was hoping the battle over Civil Rights wouldn’t turn into an actual battle. Kennedy was disheartened by the treatment of blacks in a country he felt was better than this, but at the same time was unwilling to fully commit to an issue he didn’t entirely seem to realize was as American as apple pie. On top of that he had to deal with foreign affairs. Situations such as the Cuban Missile Crisis, Bay of Pigs, and on a lighter note, the dream of sending a man into space (although this also was steeped in tensions b/w the US and U.S.S.R).

In the end it took immense pressure from activists such as MLK, John Lewis, Harry Belafonte, Jackie Robinson, James Baldwin, etc. to spur the president and his brother into action. You can relate a lot of the reaction towards what happened then to people’s reactions toward what’s happening now. Like BLM of today, the Civil Rights Movement saw different organizations such as SNCC, NAACP, and SCLC coordinating together. These groups were all well-versed in nonviolent forms of protest yet were called “radicals” and “agitators,” and were sometimes just as hated by white moderates as racist mobs and cops were. They were seen as having caused the problem simply by standing up in the first place. And if a few outliers responded more aggressively, the whole movement was demonized. Unfortunately, while Jack and Bobby didn’t agree with segregationists, when nonviolent protestors were mistreated, they begrudgingly helped secure their safety and rights. These protests got Kennedy to act but at the same time made him resent the activists. He felt it better to work it out slowly and in a room rather than out on the streets. But those protests are what made the entire country and the president stop and pay attention.

To keep white criticism largely off the president, Bobby did a lot of the legwork with the president’s approval, of course. When black students were barred from registering at school and Freedom Riders were attacked he made calls, negotiated, and hesitantly would bring out federal troops if need be. When MLK repeatedly found himself in jail Kennedy himself called to extend his sympathies to Coretta or would try to secretly bail him out. Despite these moves, MLK knew it wasn't enough and that he had to keep pushing and encouraging Kennedy to do what he knew was truly in the president's heart. Inspired by younger activists around this time, MLK became more "radical," which really just means he refused to stop protesting. The escalation of racial tension caused the president and his brother to dig deeper in the end. One of my favorite parts in this book is when Bobby decided to meet with James Baldwin, Harry Belafonte, Lorraine Hansberry and other activists to try and understand the rage that was beginning to fester and make people less and less willing to listen to MLK's talk of nonviolence. Those there that night knew the president and Attorney General Robert Kennedy weren’t racist but also knew them to be lacking the moral courage to push forward despite the book, Profiles in Courage, JFK published years before when he was just a senator.

“Bobby’s attempt fell flat when he tried to equate his family’s discrimination as immigrant Irish Catholics with the bigotry blacks endured…'that in the next fifty yrs or so, a Negro can be president.' Baldwin was unimpressed with that reasoning, ‘Your family has been here for three generations… My family has been here far longer than that. Why is your brother at the top while we are still so far away?'”

You might say it didn’t go well because they really ripped into him but I’d say it was the best thing that could’ve happened because after that Bobby seemed to be far more sympathetic and devoted to the cause.

In the end, before the president's life was sadly taken away, Kennedy found his voice and spoke definitively on Civil Rights. He proposed legislation that, due his assassination, would later be pushed forward by Johnson instead. His willingness to no longer be a spectator silently moving behind the scenes, but instead voicing out loud on national television that these injustices will no longer be tolerated, further cemented his legacy in history and in people's hearts. As a result, his picture would be put up on the walls of many black homes after his death. Both Jack and Bobby went through a evolution in those three years (for Bobby, even more so as the yrs went on) with the huge influence of King and others who fought so hard for equal rights. During this time MLK showed incredible strength while having to deal not only with staunch racists, indifferent moderates, but also the FBI's harassment and slander. While we may never know what could’ve been if these three giants hadn’t been taken away from us so soon, we do know that they accomplished and stood for things so far-reaching that we still look back on them today in order to fight the battles of tomorrow. With what’s going on in America now, I feel it’s all the more necessary to pick up books like this. To take pride in what they achieved together and to learn to apply it today.

[Noah Goats · Rating 5 out of 5]

JFK was a pragmatic politician who was sympathetic, in an aloof sort of way, to the cause of civil rights, but who had other concerns that seemed more important to him. He always placed the economy, the cold war, and political considerations far above civil rights on his list of priorities. MLK was an idealistic visionary who led people who were fed up with 100 years of continued subjugation following the emancipation proclamation.

In this book Steven Levingston does a great job of bringing this clash of personalities and priorities to life. It is the story of King and other members of the civil rights movement acting with heroic courage while Kennedy tried to avoid taking the political risks necessary to move the cause forward. Kennedy and King is a gripping work of history packed with heroes and villains and a sometimes dithering Kennedy administration that needed to be pushed into doing the right thing.

[Nick Fowkes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the most interesting books I’ve read in a while. The back and forth connections between two different worlds in the USA was very very unique and it’s not one I have interacted with before. Would recommend!

[Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this book delving into the growth and interaction of Dr. King and President Kennedy. Both had their flaws, but both made decisions that changed America. I am still amazed by the hatred and rationalization that stood in their way and has caused so much pain and tragedy over our history.

Well worth your read, one can't always say it, but I learned some things with this book that I have not found in others on the same subject and era.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This turned about to be an interesting book, due in part to the fact that it was not so much abut MLK and JFK, but about the three year period of JFK's presidency, as it relates to civil rights. The book has more about RFK than JFK, which is due to the need for responses to events such as the Freedom Rides. I learned a good deal about those rides, and some of the lesser-known folks in the fight for civil rights.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative, readable and convicting. Finished the book with even more respect for Dr. King and all of the other civil rights activists like Harry Belafonte, James Baldwin, John Lewis, Fred Shuttlesworth, Jackie Robinson, and so many more.

[Gerard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book on understanding the differences between these two pivotal leaders in history.

[Robbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing ride through the 50s and 60s through the eyes of its two most polarizing leaders. As the book (and time) progresses, Kennedy and King’s lives and ultimately legacies become more and more intertwined. Highly recommend, and a must read for any King/JFK enthusiast!

[Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could not put this book down. I knew many of the bits and pieces of history related to these two prominent American figures but this book really brought it all together for me. I learned so much and feel the Civil Rights struggle so much more deeply as a result. This all happened not so long ago and I am clearer now on why our country still has so much work to do.

[Stan Prager · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review of: Kennedy and King: The President, the Pastor, and the Battle Over Civil Rights,
by Steven Levingston
by Stan Prager (12-31-18)

The fifty-five years since John F. Kennedy was assassinated has seen his standing rise considerably among both historians and the general public, even putting him into the top ten on some lists, which is remarkable for a man who served such as brief tenure—only 1,036 days—as President, yet is less surprising perhaps when juxtaposed with his successors, whom he certainly surpassed by most metrics. At the same time, his legacy remains tarnished by his reckless philandering, as well as his oft-cited failure to fully embrace the moral imperative of Civil Rights as the critical domestic cause of his era. Five years after his murder, Dr. Martin Luther King—the central figure in that cause—also fell victim to an assassin’s bullet. While likewise dogged in some quarters by his own flaws as a womanizer, King could be said to have transcended Kennedy in death by achieving an iconic status. JFK’s visage appears on a fifty-cent piece nobody uses, while King can boast both a national holiday and an inextricable identification with pivotal African American achievement in the Civil Rights arena. If not completely forgotten, long overlooked is the fact that the paths of these outsize figures of 1960s America not only crossed on several occasions but overlapped with some significance. Their complicated relationship and its consequential impact upon American history has been brilliantly captured by Washington Post nonfiction editor Steven Levingston in Kennedy and King: The President, the Pastor, and the Battle Over Civil Rights.
On the face of it, Kennedy and King had virtually nothing in common. Kennedy was the Massachusetts scion of wealth and privilege, a war hero who had become President of the United States, arguably the most powerful man on the planet. King was a Baptist minister and activist from Georgia, an African American born into a permanent racial underclass—which meant a status that was harshly and often brutally defined in the American south—who assumed an increasingly central role in the leadership of the Civil Rights movement. But there were indeed commonalities. Both were handsome, charismatic figures with natural leadership qualities strengthened by conviction but tempered by a strong sense of the achievable, and validated by remarkable personal courage: King was frequently roughed up and jailed, which he bore with great equanimity; when his PT boat was lost in the Pacific in World War II, Kennedy swam three and a half miles over a four hour stretch towing a badly injured crewman to safety with a life jacket strap clenched between his teeth. Both men were highly educated, cultivated intellects with superlative written and rhetorical skills. Each were centrist figures subjected to frequent attacks from their flanks. King was pressured to go slower by more conservative blacks unnerved by the hostility and violence the Civil Rights movement provoked, while also subjected to ridicule as a celebrity with few real achievements for the wider community by African Americans becoming increasingly radicalized by that very hostility and violence unleashed by white politicians and police upon helpless protesters sworn to King’s vision of nonviolent protest. Kennedy was ever beset by attacks from his political left and right, sometimes mocked for showing “more profile than courage”—in a jab at the title of his Pulitzer Prize winning book, Profiles in Courage—as he navigated a tumultuous crisis-driven tenure dominated by pressing foreign exigencies.
Preoccupied with Soviet Premier Khrushchev’s brinksmanship and a Cold War that grew increasingly hotter by the moment, JFK dodged Civil Rights as a domestic distraction that he could not afford to dwell upon. Unlike Eisenhower, his immediate predecessor, racism was not a part of his DNA, but neither did he view Civil Rights as the great moral crusade of his time. Sensitive to demands for black equality and frustrated by southern intransigence in this regard, he nevertheless framed the struggle in legalistic rather than ethical terms.
By all rights, Jack Kennedy should have been more sympathetic to the plight of African Americans, still marginalized by endemic racial prejudice a century after emancipation, and frequently subjected to beatings and lynching in much of the South if they dared to challenge the status quo. After all, both of Kennedy’s grandfathers were Irish Catholic immigrants in Boston in the late antebellum era at a time when the Irish were the most despised demographic in America, so much so that the nativist Know-Nothing Party swept the Massachusetts state legislature and the governor’s office with overheated rhetoric aimed at the almost apocalyptic threat posed by the “dirty Irish.” But times change; one of those grandfathers went on become a two-term mayor of Boston. And Jack’s father, Joseph P. Kennedy, had his revenge on those who would shun him by becoming a millionaire. The older Kennedy boys experienced some bullying based on their ethnicity growing up, but were mostly insulated by their father’s wealth and position. Hatred of the Irish faded, but their Catholicism remained a social obstacle; JFK barely edged out lingering religious bigotry to win the presidency in 1960. Interestingly, it was Robert Kennedy—brother, Attorney General, and closest advisor to the President—who saw social acceptance of African Americans over time through this lens, even with prescience suggesting that a black man could obtain the White House in decades to come. Ironically, Martin Luther King also had a white Irish grandfather . . .
Kennedy and King first crossed paths with a tangential yet pivotal telephone call of sympathy and support that then-candidate Kennedy made to King’s pregnant wife on the eve of the presidential election, while King was jailed for his part in a protest, his fate uncertain. There was inevitably some political calculation in this—JFK was a master politician—as he lobbied for black voters in the north who tended to favor his Republican opponent, Richard Nixon. But there was more, as well: Kennedy was struck by the unfairness of King’s treatment, and there was indeed a greater risk of alienating the solidly segregationist Democratic South by reaching out to King’s family, which is why the call was opposed by nearly every member of his campaign. That phone call was to be historic, and in that narrow race black votes may have been crucial to the outcome.
In an outstanding narrative, Levingston charts how that call, lasting less than ninety seconds, served as foundation to an uneasy relationship that often had the two men dancing around rather than with each other on the national stage, each sensitive to the other’s position but often disappointed that one would not follow where the other sought to lead. Yet, as the author deftly demonstrates, Kennedy evolved in Civil Rights as he evolved in nearly every arena. Some have suggested that JFK was dragged kicking and screaming to stand with a cause that was righteous and belated. While there may be some merit to that point of view, it lacks the appropriate nuance and complexity and context that is neatly enriched by Levingston’s analysis. Kennedy did, at root, care about black oppression, but he would have preferred to postpone the fight, at least until after his 1964 reelection, when he would no longer have to risk retaliation at the ballot box by white Southern Democrats. Of course, neither Dr. King nor rival African American leaders were willing to wait any further for long overdue justice. Moreover, as Levingston reports, there was a good deal of jockeying behind the scenes that JFK does not often receive credit for, much of it spearheaded by Robert Kennedy, who hardly could have acted without his brother’s blessing and encouragement. Also noteworthy is that perhaps more blacks were welcomed to the Kennedy White House for both business and social occasions than at any time since Lincoln was President. JFK may be accused of taking baby steps, but these were giant leaps compared to those who came before him, especially Eisenhower, who did virtually nothing to advance African American equality during his eight years in office.
In the end, as detailed in a chapter entitled with a Kennedy quote—“It Often Helps Me to be Pushed”—the President did step up to the bully pulpit and champion the cause with a televised speech to the nation, reminding the audience that America “was founded on the principle that all men are created equal, and that the rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.” During the subsequent March on Washington in which King delivered his legendary “I Have a Dream” speech, African American White House doorman Preston Bruce, who was with the President, recalled that “an emotional John Kennedy gripped the windowsill so firmly his knuckles blanched. ‘Oh Bruce,’ he told the doorman, ‘I wish I was out there with them.’”
There is some irony that JFK walked a similar razor’s edge with his slow embrace of Civil Rights that Lincoln did with emancipation a century before, and his legacy—like Lincoln’s—has suffered for it. And, often unacknowledged, both men had their reasons. For Lincoln, it was the Civil War that posed an existential threat to the nation’s survival; he abhorred slavery, but would let it be if he could save the Union. For Kennedy, it was perhaps an even greater menace, that of nuclear annihilation, that forced JFK’s focus away from other competing issues. Like Lincoln, Kennedy was ever cognizant of principle while never losing sight of the possible. There is much to suggest that had he lived to command a second term in the White House, John F. Kennedy would have earned the praise for advancing African American equality that his untimely death denied him.
I have read numerous books about John Kennedy, an exceedingly complex character who lived his public and personal life in definitive compartments. The man and the myth are often commingled, distorting both what was and what we would like to remember. While hardly as critical or iconic to our nation’s destiny as Jefferson or Lincoln, like those two giants of American history JFK was not only brilliant but both principled and malleable. Moreover, like Jefferson he could be a mass of self-contradiction, a political acrobat poised upon opposite sides of a single issue. And like Lincoln he was forever evolving—ever “becoming,” in the parlance of Teilhard de Chardin—a new and better version of himself, until the day came, like Lincoln before him, that a bullet forever stilled that process.

Review of: Kennedy and King: The President, the Pastor, and the Battle Over Civil Rights, by Steven Levingston https://regarp.com/2018/12/31/review-...

[Susan Stonesifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating and yet I felt the denouement was quite abrupt, like he ran out of steam

[Susan O · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Levingston's writing is engaging and nicely paced. He gives enough background to provide context and basic biographical details of Kennedy and King, but not so much to become boring if you are already familiar with these men and events. Having read Parting the Waters: Martin Luther King and the Civil Rights Movement 1954-63 by Taylor Branch and Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, JR., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference by David Garrow, the events were not new to me. What was new and enlightening was the evolution of John Kennedy's understanding and feelings about the status of blacks in America and the need for civil rights reform. He moved from concern primarily with law and order to taking a moral stance on the issue. Highly recommended.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book about the civil rights era.

Although I was a kid then and thought I remembered a lot, reading this book I realized I really didn't take in that much at the time.
For example, I didn't know that King had used child protestors in Birmingham.
Or the extent and ferocity of the violence. And how the protestors, while non-violent, basically put themselves in positions where there would be violence against them in order to get attention from the white establishment, especially the Kennedys, because before that, no one in a position to change anything really cared.
Especially good on the freedom rides.

And of course interesting and informative in the light of what is going on in the US now - the unraveling of the civil rights movement, with a president who is aligned with the thugs, not the civil rights people.

[Scott Wolfe Jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It taught me a lot about the period, about civil rights, about JFK, and MLK, and it was great to get all of that perspective in one place. I thought it was an excellent lens to learn about these two people and the civil rights movement in this context, which centers around how these two leaders' worlds were connected and how their relationship developed as the civil rights movement developed.

[Wally Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up Kennedy and King: The President, the Pastor, and the Battle Over Civil Rights by Steven Levingston because I'm revising my novel which is set in the period right after the time this history covers. My book begins with JFK's assassination; Levingston's book ends just before it with the August 1963 March on Washington and King's: "I have a dream that little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the color of their character."

Levingston spends the first chapters covering Kennedy's and King's biographies to put the rest of the book into a context. The bulk of the text, however, is a history of their activities and their evolving relationship between the 1960 presidential campaign and the March. This is history, but at times it reads like a novel as, just one example, a white crowd follows a Greyhound Bus with Freedom Riders out of Anniston, Alabama. The Freedom Riders planned to eat at interstate terminals that were, in theory, protected by Federal law under the Interstate Commerce Commission Act. The bus is forced off the road, windows are smashed, a Molotov cocktail is thrown inside, and the mob blocks the exit. Fortunately, the bus passengers included two armed undercover Alabama state police who, however they felt about outside agitators, were not willing to die and helped the riders leave the bus where the Freedom Riders were beaten by the mob.

Because so much time has passed but not so much time that everyone involved is beyond being interviewed (pace John Lewis), Levingston is able to read the slanders about King that Herbert Hoover was able to put in front of Kennedy. As Senator and later as President, John F. Kennedy did not regard the Civil Rights as a major interest. He cared, but he also cared about Southern votes in congress and did not want to offend them. He seems to have felt that while Jim Crow was a bad thing, it would eventually go away and that sit-ins, Freedom Rides, marches and demonstrations were just making a bad situation worse.

JFK was more interested in international affairs, was scalded by the Bay of Pigs debacle, and during this period had to confront Russian missiles in Cuba. He did want Black votes and he courted King before the 1960 presidential election. King did not endorse Kennedy or Nixon, however, feeling that the Southern Christian Leadership Conference should keep out of presidential politics. JFK's brother Robert, the Attorney General, was delegated to deal with the situation in the South. Robert seems to have become more sympathetic over time to black aspirations and impatient with implacable southern official like Sheriff "Bull" Connor and Governor George Wallace.

The book covers—sometimes almost hour-by-hour—the Montgomery bus boycott, the Albany Movement, the "Letter from Birmingham jail," the police dogs' attack on peaceful protestors about which Robert Kennedy said, "The dogs and the [fire] hoses and the pictures with the Negroes [being attacked in Birmingham, AL] is what created a feeling in the United States that more needed to be done."

We read about the involvement of Harry Belafonte, Jackie Robinson, James Baldwin, Wyatt Walker, Nicholas Katzenbach, Harris Wofford, and more, and more. Fortunately the book comes with an index, notes, and an extensive bibliography.

It's an interesting history to read at this moment. The country continues to struggle with its racial history. On the one hand, Kennedy and King indicates how far we've come: no more segregated lunch counters, white-only drinking fountains, poll taxes and preposterous literary tests to register to vote. On the other hand, how far we have yet to go when we can watch a white police officer murder a black man on the street. We're not where King (or Kennedy for that matter) would want us to be, but Levingston's history can help us see where we've come from.

[Miguel Arvelo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thought provoking, captivating, and entertaining look at two of U.S. History's icons.

This is the kind of book our children should be reading in school. Steven Levingston manages to make history entertaining and appealing without losing the serious tone of the topic at hand. The book is written in such a way that the reader is truly transported to the events that transpired in Washington DC , Alabama, and other southern states in the late 50s and early 60s. A true masterpiece of historical storytelling.

I decided that in order to be a better informed person and to be able to comprehend the struggles and positions of today's black activists and civil right advocates I needed, I strongly needed, to learn more about Martin Luther King Jr. Little did I know that in Kennedy and King: The President, the Pastor, and the Battle over Civil Rights I would not only find information, but true understanding of the battle some people went through roughly 60 years ago for their constitutional and human rights. To see how racists and bigots reacted to non-violent manifestations is simply mind boggling. What this book allows the reader is to grasp that in the "land of the free" there were those who were willing to kill another human being simply for sitting on a bus, going to school, or having lunch next to them.

In one end, this book allowed me to understand better how far we've gotten with regards to racial integration as a society. It is a sad reality that as long as there is people there will always be racists and bigots, but the fact that we've gotten so far in mere decades gives me hope. Today I can understand better why the confederate flag can be seen as a symbol for racism, and it is not only for what it meant during the days of the American Civil War in the 1860s, but more importantly for what it represented to individuals like "Dynamite Bob" , George Wallace, and "Bull" Connor in the 1960s.

I feel I can be a more empathetic individual after reading this book and learning about the heroes of the Albany Movement and the Birmingham campaign. I can also understand what the Jefferson assassination really meant to the American "negro", and my appreciation for the black icon Martin Luther King Jr soared up to new heights.

[Mannie Liscum · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Kennedy and King” by Steven Levingston is a deep, rich and well-old story of the late 50’s/early 60’s Civil Rights movement and the intersection of two leaders of the time: Martin Luther King Jr and John F. Kennedy. Though King’s foray into the Civil Rights movement started largely by accident in Montgomery, AL during the bus boycott while he was a lead pastor at Dexter Ave Baptist Church; once captured by the movement he never lost his passion or focus. Kennedy, on the other hand, only slowly and ever so cautiously (from a political and personal standpoint) came to embrace the fight for equal rights. Though his ideals were always fairly enlightened, Kennedy was sheltered by his privilege and tempered by his political ambitions. King impressed upon the young new President from his first days in office (and even before to candidate Kennedy) the need for a Second Emancipation Proclamation to sweep clean the injustices of systemic racism, something Kennedy never acceded too. The Presidents brother and Attorney General, Bobby Kennedy, took most of the lead on Civil Rights for the Kennedy Administration. Bobby consistently showed more passion for the cause than his brother Jack, but certainly Bobby did few things without his brothers full consent. Finally in the wake of the 1963 ‘children’s marches’ and the violent reprisals by Bull Conner’s men in Birmingham, AL, the President finally found his moral center and voice on the issue of equality. The nation too was ‘awoken’ by the scenes from Birmingham, ‘the most segregated city in the US.’ Sadly Kennedy’s evolution came too late to know exactly what ‘might have been,’ as he was dead from an assassins bullet just a few months later. Fortunately for America another evolution had taken place (at least a political one of loyalty to his former boss) in Southerner LBJ, the new President who then took up the mantle of Civil Rights legislation. Bobby Kennedy and MKL survived JFK, but only by less than 5 years each; both, like JFK, also being cut down by assassin bullets. “Kennedy and King” is a wonderful read about a turbulent and important time in our nations story, one that is still struggling to find and achieve its better angels. 5 stars.

[Joseph J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here is the magnificent story of two men with little (privileged sons?) or nothing in common, whose times demand their leadership and common purpose in the goal of securing basic American rights for African American citizens. This is a story of growth. Young JFK campaigns where no former Boston politician went- into black businesses. Yet his basic experience with blacks seems to be with his valet-a surprisingly friendly and equal relationship as it were. Martin Luther King Jr. is the son of a leading Atlanta minister who in a quiet way has stood up to the mid-20th century culture. These leaders-these chosen sons- will interact in the 1960 election and after, as King's growing influence in the civil tights movement propels him onto the national stage, and in that energy Kennedy is forced to confront the unfulfilled promises of America within the power of his Presidency. Kennedy is increasingly bemused, frustrated, and horrified at obstructionist and racist Southern governors and leaders, some whom he courted in his 1960 campaign. He is also wary of growing demonstrations and sit-ins. King in Birmingham reaches a moment of decision, casts aside the dark suit and white shirt of a minister to don a work shirt and new jeans: he (again) goes to jail but produces a literary classic from that imprisonment. Here is a story of growth as men make events, with a supporting cast heroic-RFK, Harry Belafonte, Jackie Robinson-and archaic-Bull Connor, Govs. Ross Barnett and George Wallace. There are also white southerners who recognize times are changing, as other whites lob sticks of dynamite at black homes, churches and businesses. I read Taylor Branch on King and many JFK biographies; I learned much on these beautifully written pages.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book presents a detailed examination of JFK’s education on the desperate need for action to advance civil rights, and the need for the federal government with Kennedy at its helm to drive that action. MLK was the most visible leader of the civil rights movement, but he certainly did not work alone; there were many other leaders and groups, and many individuals who put their lives on the line (many permanently injured or killed in the process) to expose the appalling inequalities in the South, and its blatant disregard of what federal civil rights acts were already in place. The activists' actions also exposed the apathy in too much of the nation about those injustices, an apathy JFK had to be roused from through a prolonged process that required not just time, but also the measured, passionate and God-based rhetoric of MLK, and most importantly the appalling level of violent reaction in the South. I didn't love this book as I wasn't interested in some of the details about Kennedy and his life and political career (though I understand that was laying the groundwork for his education in civil rights), and I felt there were a few places where the author missed the need to provide additional historical details. But I do very much appreciate the book's illumination of key events and developments in the civil rights movement of the early 1960s, and the portrait of MLK. This book sent me to the library to read some of MLK's writings. It reminds us just how far America was from any true emancipation of blacks 100 years after Lincoln's pronouncement. Sadly, that process is still incomplete; America, the "melting pot", is still deeply entrenched along racial lines.

[Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rarely have I come across a book is masterfully part-history, part-storytelling, and part-biography. The civil rights movement of the 1960s has many key figures, but at the center are definitely JFK and MLK. Levingston puts it best when he said the two needed each other: King needed Kennedy to take on an active role as an advocate on civil rights, and Kennedy needed King to subdue the protests that are leading to more violence. In the epilogue, Levingston also connected the relevance of the civil rights movement to modern movements such as BLM, pointing out that the battle over civil rights is not solved through purely passing laws; it requires a cultural change across the nation and across generations, one that we are still battling through today.

A good book inspires a reader to dig deeper after reading, and this book brought me to some of JFK's past speeches, including his address on civil rights on June 11, 1963. An excerpt below shows how far JFK has come since he took office on the subject of civil rights:

"If an American, because his skin is dark, cannot eat lunch in a restaurant open to the public, if he cannot send his children to the best public school available, if he cannot vote for the public officials who represent him, if, in short, he cannot enjoy the full and free life which all of us want, then who among us would be content to have the color of his skin changed and stand in his place? Who among us would then be content with the counsels of patience and delay?"

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. It's very well-written, and fills in some gaps in my knowledge of the civil rights struggle during the early 1960's. I was a supporter of JFK when he was running in the Democratic primary in Wisconsin, as a member of the Marquette Young Democrats. The author follows his progression as a person mainly interested in international relations but a strong supporter of human rights in his heart, to one who learns of the abominations committed against his fellow human beings in a more personal way. He was practical in knowing that he couldn't have been elected without white southern support and he couldn't enact his economic agenda without it either. The author refers to his book Profiles in Courage to indicate that he aspired to courage but achieved it only after personal struggles. His relationship with Martin Luther King was mediated through Harry Belafonte, and JFK's civil rights program was developed alongside his brother's passionate experiences as Attorney General working to enforce federal law during the demonstrations for desegregation in 1961-63. King's Letter from Birmingham Jail affected the president so deeply, he made his definitive statement about civil rights, introducing the bill that became the Civil Rights Act of 1964, with many of the same points King made in the letter.

[Socraticgadfly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid four-star, but can't go higher than that.

Levingston gave me some new food for thought on Jack and Bobby on civil rights, but I'm ultimately not fully buying it. Perhaps Jack had some degree more of real interest than I've thought before, and perhaps some of his real interest was beyond a law and order angle even before summer 1963. But, I don't think it was as much as Levingston states. He also doesn't address whether or not Jack's increased interest in civil rights in 1963 was due to deterioration of the situation in Vietnam, and thus, a foreign policy PR concern as it had already been.

I am definitely not buying that Bobby was as altruistic as he claims. And, per King already in 1963 doing his own 2+2 on civil rights and America's perception abroad, let's not forget Bobby and Operation Mongoose.

Spot on, though on King in Georgia 1960 and Birmingham 1963. As Levingston notes, King had done little beyond preach and speechify after leading the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955, and the phrase that gained more credence later, "De Lawd," was already starting to be whispered. He felt he had to be involved in some activism.

Likewise, Levingston notes that King originally had not planned to march in Birmingham, but some younger blacks prodded him into it.