Yesterday marked the passing of Senator Edward “Ted” Moore Kennedy. Only two weeks after the death of his beloved sister, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, he succumbed to the malignant brain tumor he’d been diagnosed with in 2008 in his home.
The third-longest running senator in U.S. history, Kennedy was a man who fostered peace between people of all backgrounds. A staunch supporter of women’s rights and a strong presence against violence, he was known as a key player in the advances in rights of minority groups, women, and immigrants.
Honorarily knighted by Queen Elizabeth II, Kennedy was also a champion of racial justice as well as gay rights and gender equality. One of his goals before his death was to obtain a good health care plan for America, what he called the cause of his life. Like his sister, Kennedy was a man for the people, and he knew the way to true peace was to eliminate the divisions caused by human differences and instead to embrace all of humankind as brothers.
Kennedy was also awarded the US Presidential Medal of Freedom, honorary degrees from many universities, including Harvard, the Order of the Merit of Chile and the Order of the Aztec Eagle.
A powerful speaker and progressive leader, Kennedy was known as the “Lion of the Senate.” The co-writer of more than 300 bills that were passed into law, he believed ina just world and fought to make it so. Among many of the important pieces of legislation he passed, some of his most memorable include AIDS care, cancer research, medical health benefits, rights for the disabled, and education.
Today the country stands in solidarity, remembering the man who led the movement toward progress and peace for so many years. As President Obama said, he was a “champion for those who had none; the soul of the Democratic Party.”
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