Human rights activist Ethel Kennedy, widow of assassinated former US Attorney General “Bobby” Kennedy and matriarch of America’s famous political dynasty, died on Thursday at the age of 96 following a stroke. his family announced.
“It is with our hearts full of love that we announce the passing of our fantastic grandmother, Ethel Kennedy,” her grandson Joe Kennedy III announced on X.
“She died this morning of complications linked to a stroke suffered last week,” added this former elected official from Massachusetts, the family stronghold.
Ethel Kennedy was also the mother of Robert Kennedy Jr, a one-time independent candidate for the 2024 US presidential election and who has since supported Donald Trump, much to the dismay of the majority of the Kennedy clan.
Born in 1928 to a coal magnate father in Chicago, Ethel Kennedy met her future husband, Robert, at age 17. In 1961 he became the Minister of Justice for his brother, President John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
But in 1968, five years after the assassination of “JFK”, “Bobby” Kennedy was in turn assassinated, in Los Angeles, on the evening of a decisive victory in the Democratic primary.
Robert Kennedy was then ideally positioned as the future Democratic candidate for the American presidential election, in which he was the favorite.
Six months after the death of her husband, Ethel Kennedy gave birth to their 11th child. She also founded the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization, which works in particular to promote freedom of expression and association throughout the world.
“Ethel Kennedy was an American icon,” President Joe Biden said in a statement, saying she had “nerves of steel and a heart of gold that inspired millions of Americans.”
“For more than 50 years, Ethel traveled, marched, boycotted and defended human rights around the world,” he added.
Barack Obama responded by calling Ethel Kennedy an “extraordinary” woman.
“She touched the lives of countless people around the world with her generosity and grace,” added the former Democratic president. In 2014, he awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian distinction in the United States.
“In addition to a lifetime of work in the service of social justice and human rights, our mother leaves behind nine children, 34 grandchildren and 24 great-grandchildren, as well as numerous nieces and nephews, who everyone loves her dearly,” said Joe Kennedy III on X, specifying that she was now joining her husband and their two deceased children.
rle/mdz
