Personal Narrative: My Relationship With The United States

As Kennedy viewed everything happening politically in Cuba, he began to think of what America could do to help. Former President Lyndon B. Johnson attended many of the meetings and helped advise Kennedy in these conferences. After a meeting with Kennedy in early March in 1961, Johnson told news reporters, “We don’t intend to sit here in our rocking chair with our hands folded and let the Communism set up any government in the Western Hemisphere” (If U.S. 47). U.S. Senator William Fullbright of Arkansas was concerned over newspaper stories that predicted an invasion on Cuba (Schlesinger 251). If anyone in Cuba expected an attack, it would ruin the surprise attack, and the mission would have less chance for success. Fullbright wanted to let Cuba solve their problems, as long everything was contained in only Cuba (252). William Fullbright advised Kennedy and other U.S. leaders, “The Castro regime is a thorn in the flesh; but it is not a dagger in the heart” (252). Fullbright admitted to the fact that there was a problem in Cuba, but he did not view Communism as a big problem. Meetings continued through March and April, and the American people wanted to know if anything was going to be done. On April 8, Kennedy stated in a news conference, “There will not, under any circumstances, be an intervention in Cuba by U.S. armed forces” (Flaherty 94). President Kennedy did not want the American

Studying in a foreign country is an interesting experience of an individual lifetime. One tends to learn a number of things relating to ways of life in a foreign land. Social, political and economic values and aspects are usually different from one region to another. Therefore, through studying abroad one is able to learn different issues about another society such as gender and sexuality issues, social class and race/ethnicity issues. Having come from a developing country studying in the U.S.A has been a great experience personally. This paper will attempt to provide a reflection of my personal experience on studying in the U.S by comparing the history of Angola and the U.S.

Growing up in Ghana, I had heard a lot of things about the U.S. This was a country I had always wanted to visit; my prayer was answered when I got the opportunity to travel there. Arriving in a new environment came with many experiences. Adjusting with food, language and the weather was not easy. With the passage of time, however I have been able to0 adjust and fit it. This write-up therefore is to elaborate on my experiences since coming to U.S.

Kennedy did his best to avoid an invasion of Cuba, like the CIA’s failed Bay of Pigs invasion which occurred only 1 year earlier and attempted to take over the Castro-led government. Because of Kennedy’s strong dislike for any sort of military action, he encouraged the members of the Executive Committee to devise different routes of handling the Crisis in Cuba. While Kennedy did not want to take action, he understood that he needed to protect the U.S. Several air units became positioned on the southern coast of the United States, to remain for 12 months unless changed (“PENTAGON LISTS AIR UNITS CALLED: Action Lasts for 12 Months Unless It Is Changed” 17). The President exchanged letters with Premier Khrushchev, usually daily, and often several pages in length (Kennedy 1). These letters between the two leaders ultimately determined the solution to the Crisis in Cuba, and could have even strengthened the diplomatic ties between the two countries (Finney 1). When the Executive Committee realized how well the daily letters between the American president and Khrushchev were going, they chose to not take drastic actions against Cuba, but to instead take a more calm role and negotiate with the Soviet Union. This more peaceful decision ended up being the best decision to make, and earned Kennedy a lot of respect and praise for his actions (“CAPITAL PRAISES KENNEDY'S STAND: Some Congressmen Caution on Khrushchev

Civil Rights activist believed Kennedy was not focusing enough on domestic issues happening in the United States. Many people fail to understand the United States was dealing with a great deal of turmoil domestically and internationally, during the Kennedy Administration, and as the Chief Diplomat, the Kennedy main focus would have been foreign relations and not domestic. The Bay of Pigs Invasion was one of the first international the Kennedy Administration was forced to deal with. The Bay of Pigs originated in President Dwight D. Eisenhower Administration but was carried out a few months after Kennedy was sworn into the Presidency. The Bay of Pigs was supposed to unseat Communist Cuban leader Fidel Castro, however, it was a great failure.

After Fidel Castro overthrew Fulgencio Batista on July 26, 1959, he adopted a communist platform and instituted agrarian land reform programs to push the U.S. out of Cuba. President John F. Kennedy was alarmed that communism was close to the U.S. shores and was worried that Castro would spread his communist ideology throughout Latin America. Kennedy implemented the Bay of Pigs invasion on April 17, 1961, which was a plan to depose Castro and end the communist government in Cuba, but failed because Castro defeated the Guatemalan and Nicaraguan forces trained by the U.S.. The failure of the Bay of Pigs invasion exemplifies the failure of the containment policies in the 1960s because Cuba remained a communist country, and therefore shows that the U.S. was unsuccessful in curbing the spread of communism that George Kennan advocated for in his Long Telegram. Kennedy was aware that Castro was trying to spread the Domino Theory, which was the spread of communist ideology into neighbouring countries, so he established the Peace Corp and the Alliance for Progress in March 1961. These organizations were used to send aid to Latin American countries through economic development, which was supposed to reduce the attraction to communism. However, these organizations were a failure in Latin American countries like the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Chile because they turned to Castro’s communist ideology and resisted U.S. land reforms and

John F. Kennedy, an increasingly popular past American president, can also be associated with allowing one the greatest military failures ever committed by the United States. The toppling of a Cuban government, which facilitated American interests, by revolutionary Fidel Castro and his regime led many political figures to press for action prior to the election of 1960. The 34th president of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower and his administration were the first to deliberate upon military intervention and, ‘On March 17, President Eisenhower gave formal approval to a ‘program of covert action against the Castro regime’.’ Kennedy, who took a hard stance on communism during his presidential campaign, adopted the same policy as his predecessor

Russia was not the only country Kennedy had to deal with, there was also Castro in Cuba. When Kennedy came into office the C.I.A. had been planning an attack on Cuba in order take over the island. This need to deal with Castro was made more urgent with his hatred towards America and his ties with soviets in Russia. Instead of an all out attack Kennedy instead wanted to recruit and train the anti-castro group, with the help of the CIA, in order to help them overthrow Castro. In 1961, this group began their attack on cuba at the Bay of Pigs and were quickly eliminated by Castro's army, the CIA had underestimated the army’s ability. The CIA’s involvement was immediately exposed, this was shown as another failure and proof of weakness for the United States. Following the events at the Bay of Pigs came the building of the Berlin Wall. Kennedy had met with Khrushchev, the leader of the Soviet Union, in order to easy some of the tension from of the Cold War. Unfortunately when Kennedy was unwilling to budge on the topic of West Berlin, which had been separate from east berlin as part of the World War, Khrushchev ordered the creation of the berlin wall to seal in West Berlin and to stop anyone from East Berlin from getting in. In 1962 began the Cuban Missile Crisis, when american spy planes flying over Cuba got photographic proof that there were missiles being stored in Cuba. In order to avoid immediately going into a nuclear war, Kennedy opted to blockade cuba in order to stop Soviet Union ships from passing, instead of simply bombing Cuba. As the Soviet ships were approaching the blockade it seemed like it was inevitable to go into an all out attack until at the last minute the Soviets turned around. The Cuban Missile Crisis was a big win for the United States because they had finally stood up to Soviets and the missiles were removed from

“First, I want to say that there will not be, under any conditions, an intervention in Cuba by the United States Armed Forces. This government will do everything it possibly can, I think it can meet its responsibilities, to make sure that there are no Americans involved in any actions inside Cuba… The basic issue in Cuba is not one between the United States and Cuba. It is between the Cubans themselves.” These words were spoken by President John F. Kennedy at a press conference on April 12, 1961, just five days before the Bay of Pigs invasion took place. Little did the American public know that in five short days, the United States would support an attempted invasion on the Cuban shore—unsuccessfully. The $46

While it may be true that Fidel Castro had a strong impact on the uprising of the crisis, it is crucial to consider John F. Kennedy as the person most at fault for the Cuban Missile Crisis. Kennedy, America's president at the time, is often been called the most to blame because he overreacted to the missiles in Cuba. The question is if it was an overreaction or just a precaution for the safety and security of the American people. After the CIA spotted the missiles in Cuba, they informed Kennedy and he immediately called for a “quarantine” on Cuba’s eastern coast, setting up a blockade of ships along the coastline. Although many perceive this as an act of safety and protection, it is also easy to say that it was in fact “an act of aggression”

On Friday, January 20, 1961 John F. Kennedy was inaugurated into office as the United States 35th president. Prior to President Kennedy taking office, President Eisenhower had ordered the CIA to overthrow Fidel Castro and to ultimately rid him from power in Cuba. During the 1961 election, a series of debates took place in which Kennedy was able to express his views on foreign policy. The debate on hand regarded Cuba and it’s new ruler, Fidel Castro, whom had overthrown the Cuban dictator, Fulgencio Batista. During the debate, Kennedy’s opponent Richard Nixon argued that the island was not “lost” to the United States, but Kennedy disagreed. Kennedy argued, “Cuba is lost for freedom.” Shortly after taking office, Kennedy was briefed on a plan

The failed Bay of Pigs Invasion of 1961 left Cuba feeling threatened with the possibility of the United States trying once more to invade them. The U.S. wanted to take Fidel Castro out of power. He was the nationalist leader that overthrew the dictatorial president of Cuba, Fulgencio Batista. During Batista’s time in power, American individuals and corporations owned most of the sugar plantations, cattle, ranches, mines, and utilities in Cuba. Batista allowed the Americans these privileges. Castro, on the other hand, did not agree with this American approach. He believed that Cubans should be in control of their nation. Once Castro was in power, he made

After World War II, according to Margaret MacMillan’s article published by The Guardian, both counties prospered greatly: “the United States was both a military power and an economic one; the Soviet Union had only brute force and the intangible attraction of Marxist ideology to keep its own people down and manage its newly acquired empire in the heart of Europe” (“MacMillan”, pgh. 6). Furthermore, Cuba itself also underwent drastic domestic changes (that is, the Cuban Revolution [1953–1959]), which served to deteriorate its relations with America while, contemporaneously, strengthening its ties with the U.S.S.R. Consequently, Cuba’s revolutionary regime, latterly induced by its leaders Che Guevara and Fidel Castro, grew progressively reliant on its freshly created amity with the U.S.S.R., which both shared corresponding ideological perspectives (namely, Marxism–Leninism) (“Cuba”, pgh. 1; “Marxism”, pgh. 1; Zelinski, p. 34). The Cuban Missile Crisis was patently an inordinately tense moment in history; accordingly, there must be an entity that is to be accounted most guilty for nearly bringing the world to a pitiful and devastating end. The United States of America is to be held most liable and culpable, out of the three primal nations enmeshed in the predicament, for instigating the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962. An examination of the aspects that America had nefariously

For this week’s post let’s take a look at President Kennedy’s foreign policy strategy. Now, the moment President Kennedy took office he made it a point to address all nations that America would stand with its friends and against its enemy’s. Now, the majority of President Kennedy’s actions took place to aid allies against communist country’s aggression. For Instance, the Bay of Pigs is an event that the United States military intervenes in an attempt to reestablish Cuban relationships through the removal of Fidel Castro. However, the invasion turns out to be a disaster due to lack of people and training ultimately leading to a strong alliance between Russia and Cuba. Next, the United States got into an extremely dangerous tussle

The most notable events during Kennedy’s presidency stemmed from his foreign policy initiatives in regard to Latin America and the spread of communism were: The Bay of Pigs Invasion on April 17, 1961;Kennedy had approved the invasion that was initiated by his predecessor Dwight D. Eisenhower the purpose was to break off diplomatic relations with Cuba as a result from the increasing conflict between the U.S and the leftist regime of Fidel Castro, the invasion was ultimately ended by Castro’s military, the failure of The United States caused great humiliation to the U.S and the Kennedy Administration. During this the Cuban missile Crisis was actually beginning, towards the end July of 1962 Castro announce that any attack by the U.S. on Cuba would result in a World War and that he had the backing of the Soviets, in October of that same year it was confirmed that there was evidence of soviet missiles in Cuba. Later that month Kennedy had decided to enact a quarantine of Cuba, U.S military forces go to DEFCON 2 the highest ever in U.S history. Soviet leader Khrushchev proposed a trade with Kennedy in exchange for removing the soviet missiles in Cuba the US would remove missiles from Turkey however the removal of missiles from Turkey would be done secretly between Kennedy and Khrushchev this part was not part of the