JFK, the Kennedy Family, and Irish America's Coming of Age
Boston
March 2, 2014 at 11:30 am
John F. Kennedy Library and Museum
Join fellow alumni and professor of history emeritus Bruce Nelson at the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston on Sunday, March 2, for a peek into the world of Camelot and learn how the Kennedy presidency marked the emergence of a new identity for the Irish in America.
“John F. Kennedy’s ascent to the presidency of the United States has generally been regarded as cause and symptom of the coming of age of Irish America,” says Nelson. “Kennedy was Irish to be sure, but by temperament and life experience he was far removed from the Irish-American constituency and the Irish politicos with whom he was so often identified. In this regard, as in so many others, his career was full of contradictions that are eminently worthy of further exploration.”
Professor Emeritus Nelson’s principal academic interest is the "making" of class, race, and nation, not only in the United States, but in an "Atlantic World" setting. Until his retirement in 2009, he taught recent U.S. history, the working class in American society, and a senior seminar on the Civil Rights Movement. He also added a course on the making of modern Ireland, 1798-1937 to the History Department's offerings. His most recent book, Irish Nationalists and the Making of the Irish Race, was published by Princeton University Press in April 2012.
Program
11:30-noon: Registration
noon-1 pm: Lecture with Professor Nelson
1–3 pm: Reception with passed hors d'oeuvres and cash bar
11–5 pm: Viewing Exhibits
Pricing
Tickets: $65
Classes 2003–2013: $55
This Dartmouth on Location event is organized by the Office of Alumni Relations and the Dartmouth Club of Greater Boston. To learn more about Dartmouth on Location programs, please contact us at (603) 646-9159 or ar.ace@dartmouth.edu.
Image of John F. Kennedy on the Dartmouth campus in March 1960 courtesy of Rauner Special Collections Library