Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis is a name which is new for the millennial generation. She was the wife of 35th US President John F. Kennedy. She was born on the 28th of July, 1929 to a rich family involved in stockbroking. She completed her studies at George Washington University with a degree in French literature. After completing her graduation, she was recruited by Washington Times-Herald as a photojournalist. She was a social person. She used to attend various events. So at one such event, she met John F. Kennedy, with whom she got engaged and married in 1953.
After her marriage, she had some disastrous incidents in her life. She had to face miscarriage and then the second child was born stillborn. She did become a mother afterwards for three consecutive times. But the last time also her child passed away at the age of just two years. She had two kids, at last, named Caroline Bouvier Kennedy and John Fitzgerald Kennedy. The latter also died in 1999 in a plane crash. Following the death of John F. Kennedy, she also had to face the death of Robert F. Kennedy. He was one of the three brothers of John F. Kennedy. Just before his death, Jacqueline was helping him closely in the political campaigns.
Now let’s have a look at some of her good days. During the presidential election campaigns, John F. Kennedy was competing against Richard Nixon. In the end, he did win the election by a very small margin and became the president of the United States. He was accompanied by Lyndon Johnson as the VP during his tenure. During this election time in 1960, Jacqueline was not able to support John physically at the various events as she was pregnant. But she did support him by giving various interviews from her home.
At the end, when John became president, Jacqueline did play her part perfectly. She along with John became the youngest couple to become the most important family in America at that time. She used to organize various events. She also made sure that the White House depicted the rich heritage of the United States through its décor. She was the main reason to a large extent for refreshing the look of the White House during her time in the House.
To depict the state of the United States during the cold war, she did organize a tour of the White House for the media group. This as a result helped America in gaining support during the cold war. Along with all of these, she was extremely popular among the public. To such an extent that the diplomats from other countries also admired her a lot.
Once she also went to the French countryside and gained respect even there. She had a very good grip on the French language and was also able to show a very good fashion sense. At the end of that trip, President John F. Kennedy did acknowledge her persona by giving her the credit for being a more active person than him on the trip.
But her life did take a painful turn on the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated. She, later on, tried to live a quiet life, away from media and glamour. But after the death of her brother-in-law, she married a Greek businessman named Aristotle Onassis for the safety of her kids. For this particular step, she faced a lot of backlash from society.
But in the year 1975, she again faced another tragedy in her life after her second husband Aristotle also died. Then onwards she did work for a publication for quite some time. After that, she did take part in some issues involving public interest. Like she played a vital role in saving the Grand Central Terminal in the city of New York. After that, she also helped the Clinton family in the election campaign in the year 1991. She also gave some valuable advice to Hillary Clinton on how to raise a child while being in a place like the White House.
She breathed her last on 19 May 1994. She passed away due to some form of cancer. She left behind a fortune of $200 for her 2 kids.
Even today people from that time do remember her. She was one of the most well-known women of her time. She did several helpful deeds for the people of the country. She always tried to support her loved ones in one way or the other. Despite facing so many difficulties in her life, she kept on fighting for the good of the people.
“There are many little ways to enlarge your child’s world. Love of (good) books is the best of all.” ————- Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
By: Raunak Jha
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