"Some men see things as they are and say 'Why?' I dream things that never were and say, 'Why not?'

Robert F. Kennedy died on June 5th 1968, a little more than 40 years ago. And as I did with the 40th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr, I wanted to write a few words about the great man he was and the reason the world is better off for having known him. Much has been written about the Kennedy's throughout the last 40 years and it's all been said. What I'd like to talk about is a personal admiration of Robert Kennedy. I first heard about him when my mother and me sat down one day and I asked her who the best President we ever had was. She wrinkled her nose in deep thought, and said "I can't be sure, but I will tell you who would have been the best" and with a sureness I had never seen she stated, "Robert Kennedy." It was then that I began my journey of realizing that I too agreed with her. And that Bobby (as he is often referred as) had offered an opportunity for this country we have never seen. In him we had a politician that truly cared, and one that saw the meanness of the world and hoped to end it forever. I quote his eulogy by his brother Ted, "My brother need not be idealized or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life, to be remembered simply as a good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it, saw suffering and tried to heal it, saw war and tried to stop it." As I learned more about this great man, I wondered why I have never seen a man like him run for office. I saw politician after politician come up and say the same old promises with the same old lies. Their answers relied not on what was best for the country but what was polling better. They did not offer something that was different, as Senator Kennedy did. And I soon figured out why. The reason Bobby was allowed to be who he was is for two reasons. One: His name, because he was the brother of John he could be still be loved and devoted without be written off as a blind optimist. The people saw what his brother did and projected that upon him. Two: Most importantly, he had a persistence and stubbornness for what he believed in, more than any other man since. He was a champion for civil rights, a champion for peace around the world, and a champion for the little guy. He believed that all men should get a chance in this country. He believed that despite the differences we had with each other, that we are all brothers, and in turn our brothers keepers.
I'm not sure what his Presidency would have been like or if his vision could come to fruition with it. But what I do know is that he would have tried, more than any President had ever tried to make this country what it could be. And with his assassination, America's wound grew wider. Without him, it seemed impossible to overcome the vast odds ahead of us. And as I reflect, 40 years later, I see a country that is just as divided, just as hungry and hopeful of something different. I just hope this time we're ready to finally accept it. Because if we aren't, then our time may never come.