John F. Kennedy, The Alliance for Progress, 1961 Shortly after taking office in 1961, President John F. Kennedy delivered the following speech introducing the Alliance for Progress in the White House before diplomatic representatives from the Latin American...
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John F. Kennedy, The Alliance for Progress, 1961 Shortly after taking office in 1961, President John F. Kennedy delivered the following speech introducing the Alliance for Progress in the White House before diplomatic representatives from the Latin American countries. His mention of Caracas in 1811 refers to the Spanish American independence movements. It is a great pleasure for Mrs. Kennedy and me, for the Vice President and Mrs. Johnson, and for the members of Congress to welcome the ambassadorial corps of our hemisphere, our long-time friends, to the White House today. One hundred and thirty-nine years ago this week the United States, stirred by the historic struggle of its fellow Americans, urged the independence and recognition of the new Latin American republics. It was then, at the dawn of freedom through this hemisphere, that Bolívar spoke of his desire to see the Americas fashioned into the greatest region in the world, “greatest,” he said, “not so much by virtue of her area a
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