Dallas Remembers Kennedy Assassination 45 Years Later
People young and old still curious about president's murder
By KEN KALTHOFF
Updated 8:31 PM CST, Fri, Nov 21, 2008
Forty-five years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas, witnesses still remember the shooting and young people ask questions about it.
Sally Rincon was 12 years old on Nov. 22, 1963. She and dozens of her friends skipped school that day to see Kennedy's motorcade pass through downtown Dallas.
When the president passed by, they were on the corner of Elm and Houston streets, across from Dealey Plaza, where the shooting occurred.
"He had just said, 'Hi,' to us when he got shot," she said. "It just kind of brings back harsh memories, especially with the election and everything."
Mark Taylor, a teacher from Kansas City, Mo., visited Dealey Plaza on Friday with his students.
"Barack Obama inspires people in many ways that JFK did -- his youth and beautiful family and promise of change," he said.
Taylor has brought students to Dealey Plaza for years. He said the visits still stir strong feelings in him.
"I think our country changed significantly on that date, and it has an emotional impact," he said.
Students visiting the grassy knoll with Taylor were curious about the many conspiracy theories that have surrounded the JFK assassination over the years.
"You get a different perspective on each thing rather than just hearing what everyone else believes," said Kansas City high school junior Tyler Lindsey.
Rincon said she is still touched by the experience of being one of the few people to witness the final moments of Kennedy's life.
"I got to see him," she said. "That was sad; you never forget that."
Several events will mark the 45th anniversary of Kennedy's death:
- The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza will have a special program at 7 p.m.
- A wreath-laying ceremony will be held on the grassy knoll in Dealey Plaza at 12:30 p.m., the time the fatal shots rang out in 1963.
- At the Texas Theater on Jefferson Boulevard in Oak Cliff, where Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested, Oliver Stone's film "JFK" will be shown at 7 p.m.
First Published: Nov 21, 2008 7:10 PM CST
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