Looking out for the Kennedy's

When I first began teaching AP US History, I had my students read "Thirteen Days" by Robert Kennedy. The book recounts the Cuban Missile Crisis and portrays the Kennedy's as firmly in control and as strong negotiators. I asked my students if the fact that the book was written during the height of the Vietnam War tarnished the veracity of the book at all. That is, was Kennedy trying to portray himself as the anti-Johnson, someone who could solve problems by talking and not fighting?

Looks like my premise may be right as today's Boston Globe reports that the Kennedy family is blocking the release of Kennedy's papers from his time as Attorney General. As the article points out:

Some historians attribute the family’s guarded attitude to a desire to protect Robert Kennedy’s image as a champion of civil rights and social programs, and a man who emerged, in the years after his brother’s assassination, as a strong opponent of the Vietnam War. The boxes, they say, may contain evidence of Robert Kennedy the ruthless anticommunist who broke laws in the quest to take out Cuba’s leader, and perhaps other abuses of power.

Kennedy's son Max, who controls access to the papers, told the Globe:

“There are many requests to see them, and frankly, many of those requests come from people with poorly-conceived projects. It is my responsibility, as custodian of the papers, to grant use responsibly,’’ Max Kennedy wrote in an e-mail. “That does not mean that every book must be cloyingly positive; I do not think that for a moment, and I would be doing a disservice to my father if I acted that way. But I do believe that historians and journalists must do their homework, and observe the correct procedures for seeking permission to consult the papers, and explain their projects.’’

Please. Just another example of the Kennedy's trying to protect their fake, manufactured image.