The most well-known line of President JFK’s Inaugural Speech (1/20/61) is the following: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” How does the Port Huron Statement reflect JFK’s idealism?
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In Port Huron’s Statement, he furthers the societal push towards utopia. JFK became very well known and remembered after his Inaugural Speech where he described a nation uniting together in order to create a better future. Huron’s statement continued these ideals by helping to create “the Great Society.” All genders, races, an ages felt included in the movement for a better America. Port Huron’s Statement urged student involvement that boosted the optimism, hope, and excitement for an American nation worth being proud of. Idealism is all about the younger generations ensuring a better future, so the Port Huron Statement did jus that. It brought together the Democratic youth of America to fix the future of America. So many people in the world today and in the Cold War step aside when a problem arises because they don’t know how to help. In both JFK’s speech and the Port Huron Statement, societal interference is encouraged. The Port Huron Statement proves that idealism can be achieved by the members of the society and not just the government just as JFK explains. One of JFK’s most famous lines when he was elected was “let us never negotiate out of fear, let us never fear to negotiate.” This reminds me the most of his push towards idealism and his efforts to undo the Cold War. Similarly, the Port Huron Statement takes this idea to heart. For students are seen not fearing the future, change, or a fight, but determined to achieve the idealism they want. I love the line “we are the minority” in the Statement. The line is speaking to all the the American youth and not separating the youth by race, religion, or gender. The idea of the minority of an entire country being the younger generations depicts how JFK reached out to the future society for help. That small line brings together about half of the US population, which is one step towards unity and a utopian future.