The quotations of

John F. Kennedy

President of the United States from 1961 to 1963

1917–1963

68 quotes, most often on War & Peace, America and Freedom. Part of the U.S. Presidents collection.

And if there is one path above all others to war, it is the path of weakness and disunity.
Berlin Crisis speech
- War & Peace
But complacency or self-congratulation can imperil our security as much as the weapons of tyranny. A moment of pause is not a promise of peace.
Third State of the Union Address
- War & Peace
Communism has sometimes succeeded as a scavenger, but never as a leader. It has never come to power in a country that was not disrupted by war or corruption, or both.
Speech at NATO Headquarters, Naples Italy (2 July 1963)
- Politics
And any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worth while, I think can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction: “I served in the United States Navy.”
Remarks at the U.S. Naval Academy (1 August 1963), Public Papers of the Presidents 321, p. 620
- America
- Pride
I am certain that after the dust of centuries has passed over our cities, we, too, will be remembered not for victories or defeats in battle or in politics, but for our contribution to the human spirit.
“Remarks at a Closed-circuit Television Broadcast on Behalf of the National Cultural Center (527)” (29 November 1962)
- History
The basis of self-government and freedom requires the development of character and self-restraint and perseverance and the long view. And these are qualities which require many years of training and education.
Address at the University of Washington
- Character
- Freedom
This Nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds. It was founded on the principle that all men are created equal, and that the rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.
Address on Civil Rights (1963)
- America
- Justice
A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces but also by the men it honors, the men it remembers.
Remarks at Amherst College (26 October 1963)
- Honor
Without debate, without criticism, no Administration and no country can succeed — and no republic can survive.
Address to ANPA
- Debate
In a world of danger and trial, peace is our deepest aspiration.
Speech at Civic Auditorium, Seattle, Washington (6 September 1960)
- War & Peace
If a free society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.
John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address (1961)
- Charity
- Money
And cooperation in the pursuit of knowledge can hopefully lead to cooperation in the pursuit of peace.
Address at the University of California at Berkeley
- Knowledge
- War & Peace
The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie — deliberate, contrived and dishonest — but the myth — persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic.
Commencement address, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut (11 June 1962)
- Truth & Lies
Our goal is not victory of might but the vindication of right — not peace at the expense of freedom, but both peace and freedom, here in this hemisphere and, we hope, around the world.
Cuban Missile Crisis speech
- Freedom
- War & Peace
Now the trumpet summons us again — not as a call to bear arms, though arms we need; not as a call to battle, though embattled we are — but a call to bear the burden of a long twilight struggle.
John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address (1961)
- War & Peace

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