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Tuesday, April 5, 2011

A People's History Through the Story of One

Recently, I read The Last Campaign by Thurston Clarke, a book which discusses, in depth, the 1968 campaign of Bobby Kennedy for the presidency of the United States.  Though his campaign only lasted 82 days and took place 43 years ago, it still resonates deeply with me as a text about both that time and ours.  Below is my review of the book and a short video which encapsulates its importance for me.  Please read and watch!


A People’s History Through the Story of One
 
            One of the most important lessons which I have learned throughout my study of history, political science, and social studies education is that it is absolutely essential to look at the stories of multiple people to get an accurate picture of a time period.  The understanding of multiple perspectives and view points on any historical event is needed to see the true picture, and avoid being biased in any study of said event or topic.  Therefore, whenever one reads a book which is seemingly about one person, the reader must approach that book with some skepticism that that story is not the whole story, and there may not be a discussion of the multiple perspectives needed to come to a real understanding of the material.  This is the approach which I took reading Thurston Clarke’s The Last Campaign: Robert F. Kennedy and 82 Days that Inspired America, a book which centers around Robert F. Kennedy’s 1968 campaign for the presidency of the United States.  One might come to this book thinking it is solely about Bobby Kennedy and the strategies and tactics which he made during his campaign and how they affected and influenced America, ultimately concluding with his death in June 1968.  However, this book turns out to be the complete reverse, instead focusing on how the many different types and of men and women from all races and classes throughout society impacted his campaign and how he in turn made them the focal point of his mission, to win the Democratic nomination for president.  Clarke is able to bring the reader an understanding of 1968, a year which is commonly known as tumultuous, that encompasses all aspects of society and discusses the challenges that people of America and the world were facing at this time.  What makes this book truly interesting is that he does this through the lens of a political campaign, but what becomes apparent while reading the book, this political campaign was like no other.
            Of course, when looking at any book about history or politics, one should immediately become aware of the argument the author is attempting to make and the goals which he is trying to reach through his writing.  In the opening of The Last Campaign, Clarke describes some of the ills facing the United States that came to bear throughout the 1960s, and in doing so he is laying a groundwork through which the reader is able to understand why the campaign of Robert Kennedy was so needed to raise the hopes of the people, in his opinion.  The means by which he describes these issues troubling the nation is even more enlightening, as he does so through a description of the many people lined along railroad tracks who came to give RFK a final farewell as his body traveled from New York to Washington, DC three days following his assassination in California.  One passage describes how deep the admiration was stating:
Passengers stared out the windows and saw men in undershirts, sport shirts, uniforms, and suits: crying, standing at attention and holding their hard hats over their hearts.  They saw women in madras shorts, housedresses, and Sunday dresses: weeping, kneeling, covering their faces, and holding up children as if telling them, “You look at Robert Kennedy, and that’s the way you should lead your life” (Clarke 4).  
It is absolutely essential to the argument of the book that the reader understands the breadth and the depth of the impact of RFK and his campaign.  With that understanding, the refrain which Clarke keeps returning to, in some form or another, is the question, “What did he have that he could do this to people?” (Clarke 6).  Throughout the rest of the book he attempts to answer this question and show people today the inspiration which was inherent in the campaign and the man himself.  In doing so he achieves something much more important, and allows the reader to get a sense of what the people of the late 1960s were actually going through and brings real historical empathy to picture, allowing us to better take something meaningful from the text, apart from the greatness of the man.
            The structure of the book is important to the story which Clarke paints of the campaign, of the man, and of the people who were affected by actions and the words of Bobby Kennedy.  He lays out the book, initially, as a framework of the campaign by beginning with the Prologue: June 8, 1968 in which he describes the adoration most had for RFK and his broader impact on the people of America, primarily those in the middle class.  He follows with seventeen more chapters, each subtitled with the dates in which he is focusing that discussion around.  This helps to facilitate the chronology for the reader and gives a real sense of how quick the campaign started, progressed, and was finished.  Throughout he interweaves the challenges and successes of both Robert Kennedy and the people of the United States.  He does this in a way which brings the reader back into the campaign by including first hand quotes from Kennedy’s closest advisors and confidants, while also embracing the words of everyday people, which may have only met the man for a brief moment, but for whom he had the largest impact.  By structuring the book according to chronology, and by integrating a multitude of stories from all different perspectives, the reader is really able to see the impact which Kennedy had on people and the way he touched peopled.  However, a lesson which one should also take from the book is the degree to which other people touched and influenced Bobby Kennedy and how this in turn created a bond between him and the people that has not been seen since his campaign in early 1968.  This is not only an important lesson in politics, but also in history as it is becoming increasingly important to see and realize the significance of all people in shaping and guiding history, and how people in power can work with people of the masses to create a society and discussion that helps advance the cause of the nation. 
            As mentioned before, the content of the book is not simply a political discussion of what to do and how to run a successful campaign, but rather it is a complex and inspiring narrative of a man, his conflicting thoughts, and the people which drove him to fight for them.  Through the progression of the book the reader gets a real and personal sense of Bobby Kennedy and the many forces which influenced his decision to run for president and the perpetual fears and complications which followed his announcement to run in the Democratic primary.  One only needs to look at the chapter titles to see the conflict that came with the campaign and the hopes and fears of the people that manifested themselves as throughout the Spring of 1968.  These chapters include, in order, “No Choice, ‘He’s Going All the Way,’ ‘Bobby Ain’t Jack,’ The Era of Good Feelings, A Prayer for Our Country, [and] ‘Guns Between Me and the White House’” (Clarke).  In each of these chapters, as well as the rest of the book, the reader gets a sense of the back and forth between the wonderful hope and promise of his campaign and the inexorable fear and fatality that filled his campaign and his supporters’ thoughts and dreams.  This is most clearly seen in Clarke’s account of a conversation between Jimmy Breslin, a campaign aid, and John Lindsay a reporter covering the campaign. When Breslin asked, “Do you think this guy [Kennedy] has the stuff to go all the way?” Lindsay replied, “Yes, of course he has the stuff to go all the way…but he’s not going all the way.  The reason is that somebody is going to shoot him.  I know it and you know it…And, please God, I don’t think we’ll have a country after it” (Clarke 50).  This is a stunning reality for someone who was not alive at the time because it is unimaginable to think that someone who was as popular a political figure was not assured safety.  This one comment, along with the multitude of stories and recollections from people who experienced the era really brings the reader a sense of the tumult that was a part of everyday life for people in the late 1960s.  Clarke employs Kennedy’s campaign as a means to both mitigate and describe this turmoil and does so effectively. 
            As with any book, there are some areas where possible criticisms can be found, and places in which one must look at the text critically.  In The Last Campaign, one can argue that the author takes a position and primarily uses people who were close to Robert Kennedy as sources, and as a result is overly praiseworthy of the man and his message.  However, while Clarke is undoubtedly biased in favor of Kennedy, he does a good job attempting to enlighten the audience to the point of view of the critics of Bobby.  He does this several times throughout the book, whether it was prior to his entry into the presidential race, where he mentions people calling him “ruthless and opportunistic,” or the attitude of many people after he joined the race that he could never live up to his brother (Clarke 37, 54).  These are definitely not positive words to associate with any man, but Clarke does lay out the argument that is against him in order to build a greater picture of the time for the audience.  Even as he does this, he consistently attempts to show how Bobby overcame these criticisms and proved a lot of people wrong.  Similarly, one may say that the book focuses too much on Robert Kennedy.  However, any book which is biographical is, inherently, going to be about that person and their experiences at any given time.  In contrast, Clarke does not solely discuss the subject, and attempts to bring into view the larger context of the era in which he is writing about through primary quotations and observations from numerous sources of those who were close to the subject and of those who simply experienced his campaign in an auxiliary manner.  This sets it apart from other books which are centered around one man or women and makes it more impactful for the audience.
            The Last Campaign by Thurston Clarke is a complex and thoughtful story, not only about the 1968 presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy, but also about the people who were influenced and who, in turn, influenced the man and his message.  It works as a wonderful social history describing the challenges and hope embodied in the 1960s and particularly in 1968.  The author is able to answer his question and show the audience what was and continues to be special about Robert Kennedy.