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jOHN F. KENNEDY LIBRARY FOUNDATION John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest For High School Students

The John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest for High School Students invites students from across the nation to write an essay on an act of political courage by a U.S. elected official. The contest was established to help high school students appreciate the importance of public service and the difficult choices that politicians often face.

The Profile in Courage Essay Contest is named for President Kennedy's 1957 Pulitzer prize winning book, Profiles in Courage, which recounts the stories of eight U.S. senators who risked their careers, incurring the wrath of constituents or powerful interest groups, by taking principled stands for unpopular causes. The essay contest is sponsored by the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation and supported by John Hancock.

This year, 2,248 students submitted essays from fifty states and Washington, D.C., American Samoa, Bulgaria, Canada, China, England, Germany, Japan, and South Korea. The Profile in Courage Essay Contest is committed to making the program accessible to students across the country and in American schools overseas.

The winning essay by Daud Shad of Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, describes the political courage of William McCulloch, a Republican U.S. congressman from Ohio who in 1963, risked his reputation, career, and standing jl). the Republican Party when he agreed to support civil rights legislation introduced by President Kennedy. Daud, a senior at Mountain Lakes High School, will receive a special JFK Centennial award of $20,000 and a hardcover copy of Profiles in Courage as his first-place prize.

The winning essay was selected by a distinguished bipartisan committee of national, political, and community leaders: Albert R. Hunt, columnist for Bloomberg View, chairs the 14-member Profile in Courage Award Committee. Committee members are former U.S. Senator Christopher Dodd, (D-Connecticut); former U.S. Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards (D-Maryland); Kenneth R. Feinberg, Chairman of the board of directors of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation; U.S. Senator Jeff Flake (R-Arizona); Adam Frankel, former speechwriter to President Barack Obama, now Senior Director, CEO Communications at PepsiCo; U.S. Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard (D Hawaii); Antonia Hernandez, president and chief executive officer of the California Community Foundation; former U.S. Congressman Bob Inglis (R-SC); Elaine Jones, director-counsel emeritus of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund; Martha Minow, Morgan and Helen Chu Dean and Professor of Law at Harvard Law School; Shari Redstone, Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Viacom Inc. and Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of CBS Corporation; Jack Schlossberg, grandson of John F. Kennedy; and David M. Shribman, executive editor of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.

1 William Moore McCulloch:

The Humble Champion of Civil Rights

3 William Moore McCulloch: The Humble Champion of Civil Rights

Piqua, a small farming town in Ohio, would be a surprising site for one of the most consequential political meetings in American history. But on July 2, 1963 -- seven weeks before the March on Washington --Assistant Attorney General Burke Marshall flew there, on behalf of

Robert Kennedy, to meet with local politician William Moore McCulloch ("Delivering").

McCulloch, the Republican representative of Ohio's rural and conservative 4th congressional district, was a modest man who always carried "plain yellow pencils in his shirt pocket," but he had the tenacity to move Congress over civil rights (Baughman; Whalen 12). An agreement he reached with Marshall that day in 1963 was considered political suicide for McCulloch, but it would forever change the nation.

Politically courageous officials. are defined in John F. Kennedy's Profiles in Courage as those who put "their conviction~~head of their careers" (206). Like one of the book's profiled senators, George W. Norris, William McCulloch followed his heart, not political party and expedience, in supporting legislation. McCulloch had a constituency that was over 97 percent white, in which racial discrimination "was a fact of life" (Pach; "Civil"). Though "he had no political incentive to stick his neck out on something as contentious as civil rights," McCulloch worked tirelessly on the crucial issue (Keller). For McCulloch, a representative was elected to serve as a trustee and act in accordance with principles, not act for parochial popularity. When

Marshall asked the respected Republican, a descendant of abolitionists, for help in passing the

Civil Rights Act, he accepted. He knew that working so closely with the Democrats and Kennedy administration would be politically imprudent, but his "unwavering passion for equality and justice" compelled·him (Weinstein).

5 Previous twentieth century civil rights bills had been severely weakened in Congress.

This was due to amendments added by segregationist Southern Democrats that other Democrats acquiesced to in the name of party unity, frustrating Republicans like McCulloch (Thomas). This time, McCulloch would not tolerate anything less than a comprehensive bill. In exchange for supporting the administration and advocating the bill, he was promised three things: the House bill would not be "watered down and sacrificed in the Senate just to secure passage," any amendments to the bill would be approved by him, and his fellow Republicans would be

"credited for their essential role" ("Delivering"). At the time, in late 1963, McCulloch was

"conducting a lone crusade" for bipartisan support by building coalitions and assuring advocates on both sides of the aisle of the bill's security (Whalen 55). ' I'

To succeed, McCulloch would first need to revise the eventual Civil Rights Act as the senior Republican on the House Judiciary Committee. He worked with the Committee's head, the Democrat Emanuel Ce1ler, to write compromising legislation that would be as balanced as possible without losing its integrity. McCulloch wanted to make sure that it met all the goals of bringing justice and equality to long neglected Americans, and that it would pass smoothly. For his negotiations across the board, McCulloch was met with disapproval across Congress;

McCu11och 's alliance with the Kennedys was unorthodox and viewed by some Republicans as

"bordering on treason" (Keller). Despite these attacks, McCu11och risked his political career on the bill, believing that "only in compromise, moderation and understanding are we able to l I fashion our society into a cohesive and durable structure" (qtd in Keller). Some accused him of supporting the legislation out of intimidation and fear, but it was his "belief in the inherent equality of all men" that led him to act ( qtd in Whalen 105). He felt the bitter criticism, but it was

6 his courage in the face of disapproval that was essential to the bill's success.

H.R. 7152, the civil rights bill, was passed after strenuous work on February 10, 1964,

because McCulloch convinced 60 critical Republicans to vote "aye" (Purdum 112). It received \ 138 Republican votes (80 percent of House Republicans) and 152 Democratic votes (61 percent ~ of House Democrats) ("H.R. 7152"). Most of the Republicans who voted "nay" were in favor of

keeping civil rights as a state issue, and most of the Democrats who opposed it chose supporting

segregation over maintaining party unity. The bill also passed in the Senate, but with minor

amendments that McCulloch approved. In fact, McCulloch's overarching influence over the bill

earned him the nickname "Czar of the Senate" (Thomas). The act was signed into law by

President Johnson on July 2, 1964 ... exactly one year after Burke met with McCulloch in Piqua.

Herculean in his moral convictions, McCulloch knew doing the right thing was infinitely

better than losing an election or popularity. His house was picketed, he was called rl: "uncomplimentary epithets," and abuse came to him from Piqua and abroad- he did not like to

discuss it (Whalen 228). Reminded of her husband's book, Jacqueline Kennedy wrote to

McCulloch declaring that his battle for civil rights "against all the interests of [his] district" and

"integrity under such pressure is what makes our political system worth fighting for and dying

for" (1-3). Though he never lost his office, McCulloch was "often opposed by district candidates

who used strong union contributions to run against him" and challenged his loyalties (Oda).

~ Partisan pressure did not intimidate McCulloch, as he would rather bring about what he j perceived as positive change than play politics.

According to Attorney General Robert Kennedy, McCulloch's "vital assistance and

7 ------,._

leadership was of singular importance in securing passage of [the historic Civil Rights Act]" (1).

William Moore McCulloch personified political courage when he prudently looked beyond

partisanship, approval, and political advantage to advocate for something that he staunchly

believed in. Before McCulloch returned to Piqua after an arduous victory, the House venerated the humble champion of civil rights with a rare display -- a standing ovation (Purdum 319).

Works Cited Baughman, James L. "McCulloch, William." The Kennedy Years. Facts On File, 2004. American History Online. Web. 28 Dec. 2016. http://online.infobase.com/HRC/Search/Details/203988?q=mcculloch.

Civil Rights Movement in Piqua Marker. 2009. The Ohio Historical Society, Piqua. Remarkable Ohio. Web. 29 Dec. 2016. http://www.remarkab1eohio.org/index.php?/category/1 098.

"Delivering on a Dream: The House and the Civil Rights Act of 1. -~641 US House of Representatives: History Art & Archives." Delivering on a Dream: The House and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. History, Art & Archives, U.S. House of Representatives, n.d. Web. 01 Jan. 2017. http:/lhistory.house.gov/Exhibiiions-and-Publications/Civil Rights/1964-Essay/.

"H.R. 7152. PASSAGE. House Vote #128 Feb 10, 1964." GovTrack. Civic Impulse, LLC., n.d. Web. 28 Dec. 2016. https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/88-1964/h182.

Keller, Bill. "An Unsung Hero of Civil Rights." Editorial. The New York Times 19 Jan. 2014: n. p. TheNewYorkTimes. TheNewYorkTimes, 19 Jan. 2014. Web. 01 Jan. 2017. https://www.nytimes .com/20 14/0 1/20/opinion/keller -an-unsung -hero-of-civil- rights.html

Kennedy, Jacqueline. "A Personal Note from Jacqueline Kennedy." Letter to William M. McCulloch. 24 June 1971. N.p.: n.p., n.d. 13. William M. McCulloch. Friends ofWilliam M. McCulloch. Web. https://web.archive.org/web/20 120506164341/http://www.williammcculloch.org/archives .html.

Kennedy, John F. Profiles in Courage. New York: Harper Perennial, 2006. Print.

Kennedy, Robert. "Thank You from Robert Kennedy." Letter to William M. McCulloch. 3 Sept. 1964. N.p.: n.p., n.d. 1. William M. McCulloch. Friends ofWilliam M. McCulloch. Web. https://web.archive.org/web/20 140707103 7 59/http://www. williammcculloch.org/archives .html.

Oda, James M. "Biography ofWilliam M. McCulloch." William M McCulloch. Friends of

8 William M. McCulloch, n.d. Web. 02 Jan. 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20 1201110543 3 8/http://www. williammcculloch.org/ bio.html.

Pach, Chester. "McCulloch, William M." The Johnson Years. Facts On File, 2005. American History Online. Web. 22 Dec. 2016. http ://online. infobase. com/HRC/Search/Details/169034? q=mcculloch.

Purdum, Todd S. An Idea Whose Time Has Come. New York: Henry Holt, 2014. Print.

Thomas, Jeffrey W. "William M. McCulloch Papers: Biographical Sketch." Ohio Congressional Archives. The Ohio State University Library, 12 Mar. 2015. Web. 02 Jan. 2017. https://library.osu.edu/findlcollections/ohio-congressional-archives/william-m mcculloch-papers/biographical-sketch/.

Weinstein, Elizabeth. "An Unsung Hero Whose Time Has Come." Editorial. Ohio State University Law School Magazine 2015: n. pag. Moritz College of Law. 2015. Web. 01 Jan. 2017. http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/all-rise/20 15/05/an-unsung-hero-whose-time-has come/.

Whalen, Charles W., and Barbara Whalen. The Longest Debate: A Legislative History of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Cabin John, MD: Seven Locks, 1985. Print.

Note: Sources from the William McCulloch website, www. williammcculloch. org, were accessed through the internet archive Wayback Machine.

9 Acknowledgements

The Kennedy Library Foundation would like to thank the following individuals for volunteering their time to serve as judges for the 2017 Profile in Courage Essay Contest:

First-Round Judges:

Saadia Ahmad, Rosemarie Berardi, Raj Bhanshali, Hollie Blaustein, Mitchell Blaustein, Diane Bulpett, Terence Burke, Larry Byrne, Claire Carr, Wendell Chestnut, Barbara Colbert, Evan Coleman, Brendan Concannon, Julie Crescimanno, Brian Curran, Andrew Engbar, Elizabeth Fallon, Lisa Field, Ellen Fleming, Nick Forbes, Julie Garey, Joan Gearin, Matt Goldsmith, Chris Graham, Carolyn Gritter, David Guarino, Ben Hammer, Dylan Hayre, Maeve Kelley, Elaine Kordis, Lisa Lenon, Alec Loftus, Caitlin Loftus, Pamela Lomax, Brandon MacDonald, Allison McClure, Brian McClusky, Drew Mennella, Shannon Montanez, Jeffrey Moyer, Olea Nichitina, M. Fran O'Loughlin, Nicholas Parseghian, Pamela Poillucci, Matt Pollman, Matt Porter, Tom Reece, Mary Russell, Julie Ryder, Anne Shackleford, Paula Sharp Jones, Ted Thomas, Teresa Touey, Sarina Tracy, JulieAnna Verbic, Miranda Vitello, Linnea Walsh, Corey Welford.

Second-Round Judges:

Ron Adams, Ramesh Advani, Cissy Baker, Janice Barrett, Allison Bayer, Zuri Berry, Agnes Chang, Yasmin Cruz, Mark Culli~n, Richard DeSorgher, Cynthia Forrest, Benjamin Franklin, Marcela Garcia, Michael Glennon; Megan Greeley, Anthony Guerriero, Peter Howe, Reggie Jean, Jackie Jenkins-Scott, Karin Kane Bloom, Laura Keith, Dawn Poirier, Raquel Webster, Robert Widell, Mimi Wishner Segal, Nancy Young, Brad Zehr.

We would like to acknowledge the generous support ofJohn Hancock for the Profile in Courage Essay Contest.