October on the Brink

“It shall be the policy of this nation to regard any nuclear missile launched from Cuba against any nation in the Western Hemisphere as an attack by the Soviet Union on the United States, requiring a full retaliatory response upon the Soviet Union.”

-President John F. Kennedy October 22, 1962

Fifty three years ago tonight an 11 year old boy sat in front of a black and white television set, along with millions of others, and listened to a young president look possible nuclear confrontation right in the face. He was steady and unwavering. He told us what the evidence was that the Soviet Union had transported and installed offensive nuclear weapons in Cuba aimed at the United States. He said we would not stand for it. He said they would have to be removed, and said the U-S was setting up a quarantine around Cuba to stop any future shipment of missiles.

The crisis started on October 16, 1962 when the president was shown aerial photographs taken by a U-2 spy plane.
The president meet with a special committee of the National Security Council which included nine members of the Security Council and five others. They considered several options, including:
-Do nothing
-Diplomacy
-Force Castro to split with the Soviets or be invaded
-Invade Cuba and overthrow Castro
-Air Strikes to attack missile sites
-Blockade or quarantine

Kennedy’s military advisors were pushing for a full scale attack and invasion of Cuba. Kennedy was skeptical of the military after their bad advice led the disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in early 1961. Kennedy reasoned that the Soviets would have to respond with force, and maybe make a move on the divided city of Berlin. The tension escalated over the coming days. Aircraft were loaded with nuclear weapons. A break came on October 26th with the help of a reporter. John Scali of ABC News was contacted by a Soviet spy, Aleksander Fomin. They agreed to have lunch. Fomin asked Scali to reach his contacts in the State Department and tell them of a possible diplomatic solution. The Soviets would remove the missiles under UN supervision, Castro would publicly announce he would not accept any further missile shipments. In return, the United States would never invade Cuba.

Later that night the State Department received a long letter from Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev laying out the same proposal Fomin offered to Scali. The crisis would last until October 28th when the Soviets finally agreed to remove the missiles and stop all future shipments in return for the U-S promising not to invade Cuba. Although not publicly announced, the U-S agreed to remove missiles in Turkey and Italy that were aimed at the Soviet Union.

The country was shaken. Even 11 year old kids knew what was going on, and the serious consequences involved. It was a victory for cool heads lead by a president who responded under crushing pressure. Looking back on those 13 days, I can see how it was the first in a series of history shaking events that would shape our country and the world for generations to come. 1963 would bring the rush of the civil rights movement, Alabama Governor George Wallace promising segregation forever, and Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream speech”. Americans orbiting the earth in a quest to reach the moon. The publication of Betty Friedan’s “The Feminine Mystique” which launched the women’s liberation movement. The Supreme Court decision Gideon v. Wainwright which said states had to provide attorneys for criminal defendants who couldn’t afford one. The U-S backed coup to overthrow the government of South Vietnam.

But exactly 13 months after we all watched Kennedy stand up to the Soviets, we watched him shot down on a street in Dallas. As the biggest decision of his life saved us, his death changed our country and our lives. No matter what your politics, all would agree the country was never the same. It changed how we felt about ourselves. Some of the changes were for the better. The success of the civil rights movement, the fight for equality for women, fairer treatment by our courts and many more. The nagging questions for historians is what would have happened in Vietnam if Kennedy had lived. Would Nixon ever have been elected, and how our country would be different?

As we enjoy this clear, colorful October weather, we should take a moment to think about that long ago October when we, even kids, sat in front of our TV sets and looked over the brink. We should be grateful to the reasonable men who pulled us back.