ABSTRACT
The Robert Francis Kennedy years constitute a transformative era in both American and world history. Kennedy's legacy can be seen as embodying involvement in a host of struggles for justice that would ultimately combine to create a climate of change that would alter the course of world history at a pivotal historical moment. In his time, Kennedy played the role of protector of the vulnerable while prosecuting their predators. During Kennedy's time in power-both in his brother's administration and on his own in the US Senate-he struggled with striking a balance between power and purpose. After John Fitzgerald Kennedy's assassination, Kennedy emphasized the need to unite power and purpose, national and international concerns, ideals and practice. In large measure, Kennedy's legacy has the capacity to chart a course out of the darkness of the early twenty-first century because he was a statesman and a champion of human rights in the preceding century.
