When John F. Kennedy visited Berlin in June 1963, the Berlin Wall had been standing for only two years. The cold war was settling in for a long freeze. West Berliners were dismayed by the West's seeming lack of concern about their city's partition. It was a time when well-chosen words could change history.
"The legendary morale and spirit of the people of West Berlin have lit a fire throughout the world," Kennedy said to roars of approval from a rapturous crowd. But it was this line that would be remembered: "Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast...
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