as old as the Scriptures

---------------[excerpt, NYTimes.com]------------------ On
Monday, June 10, 1963,
Kennedy announced new talks to try to curb nuclear tests, signaling a decrease in tension between the United States and the Soviet Union.  Speaking at American University's morning commencement, he urged new approaches to the cold war, saying,

"And if we cannot end now our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity."

"In the final analysis," he continued, "our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet.  We all breathe the same air.  We all cherish our children's future.  And we are all mortal."

The next evening, Kennedy gave an address on national television, sketching out a strong civil rights bill he promised to send to Congress....

"We are confronted primarily with a moral issue.

It is as old as the Scriptures and is as clear as the American Constitution.

The heart of the question is whether all Americans are to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities, whether we are going to treat our fellow Americans as we want to be treated."

Action followed.  An agreement to establish a hot line between Washington and Moscow came in a few days, and a limited nuclear test ban treaty in four months.  In just over a year, the 1964 Civil Rights Act became the most important American law of the 20th century. ...
-------------------------

{NYTimes.com  "When Presidential Words Led to Swift Action" - written / Adam Clymer.  June 8, 2013}

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