Quote

Speech at Indiana University Medical School

April 26, 1968

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Indianapolis, IN

Let me say something about the tenor of that question and some of the other questions. There are people in this country who suffer. I look around this room and I don’t see many black faces who are going to be doctors. You can talk about where the money will come from…Part of civilized society is to let people go to medical school who come from the ghettos. You don’t see many people coming out of the ghettos or off the Indian reservations to medical school. You are the privileged ones here. It’s easy to sit back and say it’s the fault of the federal government, but it’s our responsibility too. It’s our society, not just our government, that spends twice as much on pets as on the poverty program. It’s the poor who carry the major burden of the struggle in Vietnam. You sit here as white medical students, while black people carry the burden of the fighting in Vietnam. Yes, but you’re here now and they’re over there. The war might be settled by the time you go.

New year, new us. Same mission.

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights is rebranding to honor the legacy of our founder and hero, Mrs. Ethel Skakel Kennedy. From now on, we will proudly be known as the Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center

While our name is changing, our mission and work remain the same. We will continue to fight injustice, advance human rights, and hold governments accountable around the world in 2026 and beyond.