robert francis kennedy was dead. robert francis knedy, born novemb 2 1925, stands behind his father, joseph patrick kennedy, in this 1934 family portrait. he was eight years old, the third of four sons and a family of nine children. the oldest son was killed in world war ii. john fitzgerald kennedy was assassinated in 19, 3 years after becoming president of the united states, sits behind his mother, the former rose fitzgerald. mr. and mrs. kennedy hold a fourth sun, edward, nelly dward, now senator in massachusetts. joseph pete kennedy went to london in 1937 as an ambassador to great britain. robert, th is en 11, the far right. the outbreak of world war ii in 1939 brought most of the ambassador's family back home. robert poses aboard the ss washington with his mother and two of his sisters. eunice and kathleen. kathleen was killed in an air crash in 1948. during vacations in the early 1940's, robert relaxed with the family at their winter home in palm beach, florida. he strolls here with his sister eunice and jean. he

50 years ago on june 5, 1968, senator robert f. kennedy was shot in los angeles after winning the california presidential primary. next on "reel america," robert 1968, 50y, 1925 to minute special report from the evening of june 6 after the senator died of his gunshot wounds. the report covers the life and assassination of the new york them up at and is anchored by walter cronkite. this is a cbs news special report. here is harry. >> good evening, the body of senator robert kennedy is in a jet heading for new york from los angeles. before 4:30 this afternoon and will land in laguardia new york, and the body will arrive at 9:30 new york time tonight. tomorrow from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 10:00 p.m., itto will lie in state, and go by train from new york to washington, and in a motor procession from new york's union station to go by the senate office building, and by the justice department, where robert kennedy served as attorney general, before burial saturday afternoon in the same plot where john kennedy lies. already, there are people gathering

robert f kennedy. eunice kennedy is at right. robert received his law degree in 1951 and became widely known in the years immediately following. first is a counsel for senator joseph mccarthy's subcommittee in the senate. later as chief counsel for the subcommittee. he and ethel began raising a family in those years. one of the most controversial episodes in his career, a subject often brought up by political opponents, was his service as assistant counsel to the mccarthy committee. 1953 when mccarthy, after rocking the nation with charges of communism and high places became embroiled in a battle with army officials represented by joseph welch. the hearings, which arose from claims of subversion and army camp led to the eclipse of senator mccarthy's career and to the resignation of robert kennedy from the committee after six-month service. kennedy had been feuding with the chief counsel. he was to return to the committee as counsel for the democrats and ultimately succeeded with chief counsel. in 1957, kennedy stepped into a role

robert f. kennedy. at right.nedy is robert received his law degree in 1951 and became known in the years immediately following. counsel for senator mccarthy's committee.ve they began raising a family years.his one of the most controversial episodes in kennedy's career, a subject often brought up by opponents over the years, was his service as assistant council to the mccarthy committee. this was 1953 when mccarthy after rocking the nation with charges of communism in high places embroiled in a battle with army officials. the stormy hearings which arose from mccarthy's claims of subversion in an army camp led to the eclipse mccarthy's career and to the resignation of robert kennedy from the committee after six months' service. kennedy had been feuding with mccarthy's chief kohn, butoy kennedy was to return as counsel for the democrats he succeededy, him as chief counsel and staff director. in 1957, kennedy stepped into a role that was to heighten his reputation as a tough investigator. chief counsel for t

here in my office once sat the great robert kennedy who did see wrong and trd to right itnd and try to stop it. in may 1968, i was in sixth grade. i was an 11-year-old out in oregon, and bobby kennedy, as we affectionately referred to him, was campaigning in my state area -- state. he was going quickly from community to committee, delivering speeches anonhi school after another. my grade school sixth-grade teacher announced he was going to give a speech at a high school, my high school. i was only in sixth grade, i never said foot in the halls of that high school. was going to give a speech the next night, and i talked to my father, my father was a mechic, he worked very hard. the evening in quite happy to settle in, watch the national news, read the newspaper, and reflect on the news of the day. so i came to him and i said, i understand robert kennedy is giving a speech and we can go see him, and my father said it is the end of the day, son, and i just do not feel like going wish so mucht, i that i had said, i think i will go down to that high school, find my way down to the high scho

>> nepotism. >> despite robert kennedy's open concerns, president john f. edy overrode his critics by nominating his brother for attorney general. >> in a sense, it was outrageous for president kennedy to pick his own brother as attorney general to enforce the laws. that could not happen today. in 1960, the rules were looser. they got heat for it but they got away with it. >> the second man of the government? i don't suggest that. >> robert kennedy was number two in the kennedy administration. it was not the vice-president by a long ways. jfk came to feel that bobby kennedy was the only person who had the president's interests completely at heart, not anyone else's. >> great danger in all of these matters in dealing with a dictator. he miscalculates, the world could be destroyed. >> both brothers are preoccupied with the nuclear threat posed by the soviet union whose leader now tests the young president. >> the overwhelming worry in the kennedy years was can we survive and prevail in our conflict with the soviet union. that permeated everything. children wer

we will never know whether robert kennedy would have succeeded in his election to be president, or exactly what would have flowed from a second kennedy administration. we can only speculate on how our nation's history might have been changed, how different our country might have been with his vision, his inspiration, his effort to tackle the issues of poverty, the issue and challengesf war, the issues and challenges of division in our nation. but one thing we know for sure, and that is the world is a le pcehis last 50 years because robert f. kennedy is not in it. but his thoughts live on. and here in this institution, members of t senate, we should carry those thoughts forward on these important issues that he addressed of war and poverty and bigotry and discrimination, of ensuring opportunity for all. in his speech to students in capetown south africa, robert kennedy said each time a man stands up for an ideal or acts to improve the lot of others or strikes out against injustice, he sends for a tiny ripple of hope and crossing each other from a million different centers of ene and daring,

kerry kennedy daughter of robert f kennedy and her book robert f kennedy ripples of home.oger biles author of mayor harold washington, champion of race and reform in chicago. on sunday our coverage continues at 11:00 a.m. eastern with former president of the aclu nay dean straussen and her book hate. why we should resist it with free speech. not sensorship. a journalist with his book everything you love with burn. inside the rebirth of white nationalism in america. pulitzer prize winner with the making of the american sea. and author robert kerrson with rocket man. and the astronauts who made man's first journey to the moon. watch our live weekend coverage of the 34th annual printer's fest in chicago starting saturday at 11:00 eastern. >> former analytica president appeared for a committee for a second time to take questions about the company as alleged data privacy practices and relationship with facebook. much of the hearing focused on testimony given by christopher wiley who claims the company played a role in the 2016 brexit referendum and shared private user data. the

that's what robert kennedy stood for. thank you mrs. etsdzle, members of the kennedy fam -- ethel. members of the kennedy family, for inviting me to join you again 25 years later from the first time we had this and 50 years since we lost senator kennedy. i thank those who have sung and spoken before reminding us once more of the timeless wisdom of robert kennedy's words. and all of you for the efforts you have made over half a century to advance the work he could not finish. i think if he were here today and as we were told in the invocation he really is here remind us that perhaps the words he spoke then are truer today than they were hen. in another time of hope heart break and division it is important that we remember what he meant to us when we were young and what he means today. in 1968, after a couple of tumultuous years leading up to it, every day seemed to bring a new piece of bad news. in a deepening division in semester was my last in college here at georgetown. somebody said what did you do at the end of your college career?

robert kennedy's fate as a presidential candidate now hangs on the outcome of the california primaries. >> bobby kennedy, having lost oregon, knew he had to win california, and that would be his ticket to the convention. >> kennedy is back among his people, and after the satisfied prosperity of oregon which failed to respond to kennedy's approach, the senator is again turned on. >> he was a rock star. it gave him a kind of courage and power to keep going. >> part of our job everybody had to wrap your arms around his legs so he wouldn't get pulled from the car by his admirers. >> he campaigns so hard that his -- his hand is swollen. he loses his voice. >> we're here in los angeles, and california, you have made it possible, and i will work with all of you. give me your help, give me your hand. thank you. ♪ >> abc news presents "race to the white house," complete coverage of the presidential election year 1968. tonight the california primary, coverage of today's presidential primary in the golden state. >> an hour and a half after the polls have closed in california, the biggest primary

all that violence could have been averted even without robert kennedy being there with hubert humphrey as a presumptive nominee and with the kennedy people to unify the party they just told humphrey with the negotiators so humphrey did. they hammered out the language that made everybody happy the secretary of state and those negotiators said we could deal with that. everybody in graham park wanted to have the lovefest and he put the kebabs on it with the chairman of the committee kellett i don't care if they will be the nominee i run this party to blowout the language and that is when all hell broke loose in grant park so just to allow the personal privilege few minutes ago one of my colleagues 1968 with the tet offensive united states navy right in the middle of that warfare. fifty years later on the anniversary he went back with some widows with the men with whom he had fought rick stand up so we can thank you. [applause] >> by the way the story is in the book two days before he was assassinated at breakneck speed he took a few hour break in the campaign to keep a promise to his kids

kennedy's views. on march the sixteenth one thousand nine hundred sixty eight robert f. kennedy announced that he would run for president. i do not think it did my candidacy. the president of the united states. i do not run for the presidency merely to oppose any man. but the whole new policy. that this country is for. because i have such strong feelings. about what must be done. to all but i. think. all of these. vietnam. and in our city. all of these polls that gap. between black and white. because that is now on mistaken belief. that we can change these disasters by the polity. only by changing the man why not make. was bush surely an impossible thing i can today did not have the backing of the national democratic party and senator eugene mccarthy also a democrat enjoyed widespread support i kennedy's campaign was disorganized at first but he soon tapped into the popularity that enjoyed among voters millions followed his campaign on t.v. i but could he convert that popularity into votes. kennedy faced a tough series of back to back primaries and then a difficult nomina

kennedy's views. on march the sixteenth one thousand nine hundred sixty eight robert f. kennedy announced that he would run for president. i think a day my candidacy. for the presidency of the united states. i do not run for the presidency merely to oppose any man. but the whole new policy. i run because i am convinced. that this country is on a perilous for. him because i have such strong feelings. about what must be done. and i do know that i'm a lot. to do all that i. i run to see you follow. all of you and the bloodshed in vietnam. and in our city. i want to see all of the close the gap. there between black and white i run because it is now on mistaken belief. that we can change these disastrous divisive policies. only by changing the man we're now making. i was a bush surely an impossible dream i candidate did not have the backing of the national democratic party and senator eugene mccarthy also a democrat enjoyed widespread support i kennedy's campaign was disorganized at first but he soon tapped into the popularity that he enjoyed among voters millions followed his

robert kennedy was now politically isolated but he was determined to defy johnson and his allies. and johnson wasn't the only threat. to. our reports surface that kennedy as attorney general had approved wiretaps on dr martin luther king and others. bobby's reputation as a civil rights advocate lay in tatters but he survived his sent back and now focused his efforts on ending the conflict in vietnam. johnson's policies on the war had become increasingly unpopular more and more american supported candidates views. on march the sixteenth one thousand nine hundred sixty eight robert f. kennedy announced that he would run for president. i do not think a day my candidate. or the president of the united states. i do not run for the presidency merely to oppose any man. but the bold new policy. that this country is on for. because i have such strong feelings. about what must be done. and i feel that i am blind. to all but i. think if you follow. politics. and in our city. all of these polls that gap. between black and white. because that is now on mistaken belief. that we can change these

you very much. >> thank you congressman for your remarks and your remarkable embodiment of what robert kennedybers of the kennedy family and i am delighted to enjoy you on --dash 45 years later from the first time we had this and 50 years since we lost senator kennedy. we have spoken before and it reminds me that the timeless wisdom of robert kennedy's words and all of you for the effort to have made over half a century to advance the work he could not finish. i think if he were here today, and as we were told in the invocation, he really is here today. he would remind us that perhaps the words he spoke are truer today than they were then. [applause] and another time of hope and heartbreak and division, it is important that we remember what he meant to us when we were young, and what he means today. in 1968, after those small twists years leading up to it, every day seemed to bring a new piece of bad news. with the deepening division america, it was my last semester in college here at georgetown. what do you do at the end of your college career? he was killed on april 4 a few days before that

i had that experience because when my dad died a month later, robert kennedy on christmas eve , left his -- then i think, eight children, in virginia while he came to philadelphia on december 24 for my father's funeral. and he brought with him a letter from jackie kennedy, which he had basically gotten from her the day before, which is as beautiful a letter as you will ever see. and you know, he was -- first of all, so he came to the funeral, and he heard while i was here that i was in the running for my father's seat. about a week later, i got a call and he says to me, "i understahnd you want to run for your father's seat." [in kennedy's voice] [laughter] i said that's correct. he said, "i sent kenny o'donnell up there, and he looked at the situation, and i know a lot of the organization your father built are lined up against you, but if they take you on, i want you to understand that we will be in." i said to him, can i ask you a couple of questions? he said yes. "explicitly, what does we will be in mean?" youaid to me, if they take one, kennedys will crawl all over your district. t

for robert f kennedy, this was a measure of a life well lived.ions, the touch, a look, the moment between strangers and friends, where we leave aside expectations and ego and acknowledge each other's worth and wisdom, where we pause and see each other. when we look past color or creed or class and recognize a humanity we all share. our imperfections, our contradictions, our hope for something, for the truer, kinder tomorrow. that humanity anchored my grandfather. it carried him from the fields of farmworkers to the hollows of appalachia and the sprawling reservations of indian countries to the tenements of bedstead where in the shadows, in the background, the quiet spaces that rarely sought or got attention, robert kennedy found the arteries of our american heart. and he said to those forgotten, "your country sees you. your country values you. america would not be america without you." he held their hands. he knelt by their side. he shared their sorrows. and he lifted their spirits. he wasn't radical or revolutionary. he was human. and willing to

king and robert f kennedy himself. is 1963, right after that meeting he had w with harry belafonte and lena horne and robert f kennedy. th i is baldn. , , hed d on televisioion said, i'i've got no couountry, f got no flalak. he was o only 16 yearsrs old. icould nonot say, you do is t o don't haveny evidence to prove that he does. ere were tearing down n his i is becausean francisco engagingng as most othther citis are, and somome gro urbanan renewal, w which means m moving groes. out. it means negegro removalal. were talking about humuman bein. not t such a tng as a monolithic wall or obstrtrtion, these are negr wasasn girls who at 16 and 17 stitill fl they havave any place here. based on the performance of the entire country. amy: james baldwin in 1963. we will be back with michael eric dyson, authoror of "what truth sounds like: rfk, james baldwin and our unfinished coconversation about race in america." ♪ [music break] amy: this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. as we tur

that all that violions could have been everted even without robert kennedy. it was all over the vietnam war and hubert humphrey as presumptive nominee, the presumptive nominee moved heaven and earth to try to come up with compromise language with kennedy people and the mccarthy people to unify the party, he just told to stay in touch with secretary of state and negotiators to humphrey did. the secretary of state said i can live with this and negotiators said we can live with it. they were ready to unify the party. everybody in grant park, word leaked out that they were ready to have love fest, lbj found out about it and had chairman in platform committee killer, he said you will do it my way, i don't think if this guy will be the nominee. i'm the president, i run this party. they threw out the compromise peace language and that's when all hell broke loose. if you will allow me, i talk abouted a few minutes ago, one of my colleagues, good friends judge rick king, 1968, january, rick king, united states navy, right in the middle of the warfare. 50 years later on

robert kennedy was an incredible story. he was a man who evolved in the course of his life and when he died, he had achieved, he had achieved such affection an such popularity, because unlike anybody else who has run for president since, he understood the meaning of loss. he understood vulnerability. and it made him a better man and a better politician. and it's quite a day, joe to sit here and remember all of this, a flood of memories. >> it really is. and david ignatius, though, just for younger americans, actually just for people that may be 50 years or less, i think it is important to remind people that when mike barn kill says that things are different today than they were in 1968, in many ways though still the same, a few, a few quick points here. one, things were actually much worse in 1968. in many ways, our perspectives are so skewed by what's happened to us over the past 15 minutes that we lose perspective of just how horrific things were in 1968. not only the assassinations, but the riots, 100 young americans as

the body of senator robert kennedy is now in the air in a jet furnished are the white house and the air force heading to new york from los angeles. 430 p.m. and will land in laguardia new york. the body will arrive sometime around 9:30 p.m. new york time. tomorrow from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and longer if there are lines. it will lie in state before a requiem mass at 10 a.m. saturday and go by train from new york to washington and a motor processions from new york's union station to go by the senate office building and by the justice department where robert kennedy served as attorney general before burial at about 5:30 p.m. saturday at

robert f. kennedy human rights hosted this event. >> ladies and gentlemen, please rise for the invokeation by ather matt malone. > let us pray. we meet not in a moment of mourning, but in an hour for hope. for this memorial is not only our remembrance of things past, but the touchstone of our present. and the right of dedication to our future. we gather here in this sacred place for the memory of all of our fallen heroes for our hearts with the highest aspirations of the nation to proclaim to our fellow citizens and to the world bobby kennedy still lives. in millions of hearts that seek newer world, in millions of minds that dream things that never were and ask why not in every ripple of hope. yet we make this proclamation not only through mere human earthly jesttures, but of prayer, that privileged place with every soul with the grace of god transformed our wounded hearts of wounded healers. where sorrow is charged with meaning and human weakness is redeemed and hope reborn. and so we pray let the god

out , some of the most memorable days and happiest days of my life were the times i spent with robert kennedy. let me begin by offering praise for larry and his book bobby kennedy the making of liberal icon. what larry offers in the book is the result of extensive research, including previously and newlyd reports released reading materials from the kennedy library and access to people other authors did not have, most notably ethel kennedy. such's many books on as pullmancs such railroad card workers, superman, and jewish renewal in different global areas come to life for readers not only because of his deep research but also his captivating style. he also runs the boston-based health coverage fellowship, which helps the media do a better job reporting on health issues. -- "bobbynedy: kennedy: the making of a liberal icon" is not a valentine, but bobby's strength and courage shine through any perceived what i wouldwith say is this largely admiring portrait. the book has drawn praise from far and wide including from john region and former secretary of state henry kissinger. the new york times b

a look at robert kennedy's legacy, 50 years after his assassination. and, navajo life seen on a monumental scale. next on pbs newshour weekend. r >> "pbs newshekend" is made possible by: bernard and irene schwartz. the cheryl and philip milstein chamily. sue and edgar heim, iii. dr. p. roy vagelos and dlona t. va the j.b. foundation. the anderson family fund. rosalind p. walter barbara hope zuckerberg. corporate funding is provided by mutual of america-- designing customized individual and group retirement products. that's why we're your .retirement compa >> additional support has been provided by: and by the corporation for public broadcasting, and by ieontributions to your pbs station fromrs like you. thank you. from the tisch wnet studios at lincoln center in new york, hari sreenivasan. >> sreenivasan: good evening and thank you for joining us. today, china warned of a trade war if the united states increases tariffs. the canadian prime minister used the terms "insulting andac ptable" in response to new u.s. tariffs on his country's steel and alumin

also, remembering the life and legacy of robert kennedy.the queen and her husband began their royal progress to westminster. the moment of crowning in accordance with the order of service, by a signal given, the great guns of the tower shall be shot off. tributes have been paid around the world to muhammad ali, who has died at the age of 7a. outspoken but rarely outfought, ali transcended the sport of boxing, of which he was three times world champion. he was a good fighter and he fought all the way to the end, even through his illness. yes, he did. uefa imposes an indefinite ban on english clubs playing in europe. today is the 20th anniversary of the release of the beatles‘ lp sgt pepper's lonely hearts club band, a record described as the album of the century. you're watching the briefing. our headlines: funerals have been taking place for some of the 99 people who died after guatemala's fuego volcano erupted. opposition politicians are calling for the head of the emergency response agency to be sacked. spain's prime minister has unveiled

presidential hopeful robert kennedy was shot minutes after he'd given a campaign speech in los angeles he died the next day kennedy was a leading candidate for the democratic nomination and his supporters believe he would have followed his older brother john to become one of the great presidents roslyn jordan looks back at his life and legacy. robert kennedy was everything a working class hero wasn't supposed to be but in one thousand nine hundred sixty eight with the country in political and social chaos kennedy supporters thought he could be the president the nation needed you don't really care if he won or lost he saw. he was all about trying to create change and trying to make the world more just change mantra ending the war in vietnam stopping racism and discrimination and erasing harvard he from every corner of the country history may not repeat but it often rhymes conditions are different now but a lot of the anxiety that swept through the country in one nine hundred sixty eight echoes the anxiety of today kennedy's early career was linked to that of his brother the president bu

robert kennedy had won the california primary and was closer to the white house. kennedy brother killed by an assassin‘s bullet. 50 yea rs brother killed by an assassin‘s bullet. 50 years later, his life and legacy were remembered by some who never knew him and some who miss in most. you share our deep sense of loss and our happy memories. your presence is deeply moving and a tribute to the love that my father inspired. thank you for remembering. it was at arlington, the place where he was buried just a few feet from the grave ofjfk, that this service took place. many here, convinced that the words of robert kennedy a more relevant than ever. we can do it all over again but we had to do it all over again but we had to do it the way he did, speaking to everybody, stating the same thing to everybody. with a heart full of love and an outstretched hand. this was a service dedicated to a life cut short, a legacy incomplete. but it was also dedicated to the ideas of robert kennedy, what his grandson called his belief in a truer, kinder tomorrow. tim allman, bbc news. co

many here, convinced that the words of robert kennedy a more relevant than ever.it the way he did, speaking to everybody, stating the same thing to everybody. with a heart full of love and an outstretched hand. this was a service dedicated to a life cut short, a legacy incomplete. but it was also dedicated to the ideas of robert kennedy, what his grandson called his belief in a truer, kinder tomorrow. tim allman, bbc news. just days now before the summit between president trump and the north korean leader. the outcome potentially of huge significance to many other countries. japan will be watching particularly closely. prime minister shinzo abe will be speaking to mr trump before the summit, but there's still concern that any deal between washington and pyongyang may not suit tokyo. rupert wingfield—hayes reports. air raid siren wails japan is afraid of kim jong—un‘s nuclear missiles. so much so it began last year doing something it has not done since world war two — practising air raid drills. america is afraid of this. north korea's huge new hwasong—ili missile.

. >>> 50 years ago today, senator robert f. kennedy was shot in california. such an indelible moment in history. what would have happened had this moment turned out differently? his one time speech writer jeff greenfield joins us next. -♪ he's got legs of lumber and arms of steel ♪ ♪ he eats a bowl of hammers at every meal ♪ ♪ he holds your house in the palm of his hand ♪ ♪ he's your home and auto man ♪ big jim, he's got you covered ♪ ♪ great big jim, there ain't no other ♪ -so, this is covered, right? -yes, ma'am. take care of it for you right now. giddyup! hi! this is jamie. we need some help. looking for a hotel that fits... whoooo. ...your budget? tripadvisor now searches over... ...200 sites to find you the... ...hotel you want at the lowest price. grazi, gino! find a price that fits. tripadvisor. i we worked with pg&eof to save energy because wenie. wanted to help the school. they would put these signs on the door to let the teacher know you didn't cut off the light. the teachers, they would call us the energy patrol. so they would be like, here they co

his son, robert kennedy jr., now believes the investigation into his father's killing should be reopened. kennedy talks about his dad's legacy in a new book called "american values," and he sat down with michelle disappointed about what is happening in the political landscape in our country today. >> reporter: strong words from robert kennedy jr., whose family legacy has been indelibly marked on american politics. >> america is an example that we should know the difference between leadership and bullying and we should try to promote democracy. >> reporter: his new memoir recounts the days known as camelot, when his family was among the most powerful in the world and the most tragic. >> my family had a lot of tragedies, but many american families do. my mother always said this after my dad died, everybody takes their licks, and that there are family. i don't think a day goes by that i won't run into somebody who doesn't come up to me and say i'm a nurse. i went in to public service because of your dad. "american values." did you mean for it to set the record straight? >> welly, one of the

thanks for coming over to "hardball" tonight. >> a great pleasure. >> 50 years ago, robert kennedy wes going to make it. he did not in th ends. you wereh him in sort ofis grth >> whe bobby kennedy became attorney general, many of moaned of that fact because he had never displayed from our perspeive great concern for the plight of black people. as a matter of fac he knew very little about our plight. not that he was indifferent. he just didn't know. i seized on that fact and told him that he would never have an easy time of it if he didn't come to know more about the black cause. that sparked in him a sense of astonishment because he felt that after all, john kennedy had been doing such wonderful things and that there was not enough sense of appreciation from the black perspective for what john was yes, it's true, we are most critical and in that sense, bobby inherited the task of trying to mobilize us through the kennedy administration. when i asked him about why he felt he could adminster the needs of this country little abouthee who were the most disturbed and he pointed out that he

kennedy's son robert kennedy jr. lling "the washington post" he met the man convicted of the crime, sirhan sirhan, in prison and left disturbed that the wrong person might beeconvicin the killing of my father. kennedy's daughter, kathleen kennedy townsend, telling us she's joining that call. >> i've talked to bobby, and i think that he makes very good points. i think it's worthwhile. >> reporter: robert kennedy jr. says among the evidence sparking his doubts, audio of 13 shots fired. sirhan's gun held just eight. >> if there is going to be an investigation of what happened that night, the fact that important family members feel there should be one should give this movement a lot of added energy. later, we're also left to wonder about what might have been. by 1968, kennedy was a crusader for social justice. >> i run for the presidency because i dti party and the united states of america to stand for hope instead of dir >> reporter: as the vietnam war raged, and inner cities burned, his presidential bid raised hopes tha

king and later the murder of robert kennedy. andut of this pain uncertainty emerged the poor people's campaign, a campaign shaped by both hurt and hope, that sought to find a way to a multiracial collaboration, to alleviate the poverty that defined to many communities. allows us toon appreciate the planning, the sacrifices and the commitment to fulfilling dr. king's dream, that was a part of the poor people's campaign. it also candidly repositions dr. ralph abernathy as an effective leader of the post-king civil rights movement. while it is clear resurrection it didd not end poverty, help focus america's attention on the vast and diverse array of americans trapped by poverty. the six-we can cap mint on the national mall, it is contemporaryee the resonance of the poor people's campaign. after all, the mall has been the site of so many moments where people have demanded a changed america. african-americans used the bully pulpit of that expanse of land equality, from marian anderson in 1939 to the march on washington in 1963 to the

robert kennedy was everything a working class hero wasn't supposed to be but in one thousand nine hundred sixty eight with the country in political and social chaos kennedy supporters thought he could be the president the nation needed you don't really care if he won our laws to be solved. when he was all about trying to create change and trying to make the world more just change mantra ending the war in vietnam stopping racism and discrimination and erasing harvard he from every corner of the country history may not repeat but it often rhymes conditions are different now but a lot of the anxiety that swept through the country in one nine hundred sixty eight echoes the anxiety of today kennedy's early career was linked to that of his brother the president but john's assassination in one thousand nine hundred sixty three pushed him into the spotlight and martin luther king's killing in one thousand nine hundred sixty eight kept him there he was on his own he wasn't his job had been to take care of his brother in no it was robert kennedy doing what he thought was the best thing to do when p

he lifted them up. >> kathleen kennedy townsend the oldest of robert and ethel kennedy's 11 children.he says people found that hope in the questions her father was asking. >> we have this great wealth, $800 billion ape year. we have all this military power. yet how do we to it? what do we do with it? >> how do we make moral choices? how do we help our fellow human being. most meaningful thing you can do. >> it was their faith in the answers he offered. that helped him build a coalition that implausible if not impossible to imagine today. >> he could speak to white working class men and women. because they trusted him that he would fight for them. and he also, fault for african-americans. if you talk to, those who met him, you never sensed that he felt he was better than you. he was with you. >> the story of bobby kennedy as his loyalists tell it is a tale of transformation. from hard charging, law and order young attorney, to joe mccarthy's staff. social justice warrior by the late 60s. >> he was not just a speaker, he would listen to what people were saying after the great wound of h

. >>> 50 years ago, robert kennedy was assassinated. the new york senator was shot and killed as he was running for the democratic presidential nomination in 1968. it happened minutes after kennedy made a speech in los angeles after winning the california democratic primary he was otby 22- year-old palestinian born man. senator kennedy died 25 hours later. now robert kennedy's oldest son, robert kennedy junior tells the washington post he believes his father's real killer was never captured. in the case should be reopened. >>> let's check back in with sal. i saw construction early on. >> there is construction all over the place. sometimes it slows you down. at the altamont pass, was not 580, it slows as you come across. it gets better while on the pass. livermore and dublin is moving okay. you can see that speeds are low. traffic is going to be slow as you come up on 205 and 580 interchange at 50 miles per hour. looking at the commute from dublin to hayward, it is a nice looking drive. a live look at interstate 88 zero in oakland. traffi

said a lot for the esteem that the people held robert kennedy in.levin owns the car that held the casket 50 years age. >> this is where the casket was placed. because the door is so narrow. the window was removed. and, the -- the casket came in. and they took chairs from the dining room. and put six chairs here. to hold the casket. ♪ glory glory hallelujah >> last car standing there, i see a lady with a veil. and she is sitting next to a casket. that has a flag over it. i was like -- i wasn't ready for that. i just expected to see the train. and here i am looking at a lady with a veil. upown street.to a coffin.>>icere tossing tear gas into the crowd. >> during a year marked by racial unrest from assassination of martin luther king to riots in cities, 15-year-old mike cam scott went with his mother to watch the train pass through northeast maryland. >> the fact that he was willing to stand up for people who look like me, people who weren't privileged, people who work in harsh working conditions. that spoke to me. as a young man. the train was carryin