Edward Kennedy: A Strong Voice for the Poor and Oppressed.

Published in The SouthAsian Times, August 28,2009

Edward Kennedy, who died at the age of 77 after battling with cancer, was a true leader and a celebrity in his own right. His most ambitious goal as a legislature was overhauling the health care which he pushed through at Capitol Hill till the end of his life. Universal health care remained the main cause of his life. He championed the cause of millions of uninsured Americans whom he didn't want to be marginalized. I spite of his poor health he continued to be a great fighter and architect of the health care reform proposals currently being debated at the Capitol Hill and around the length and the breadth of United States. Unfortunately he didn't live to see the proposal being voted into a law even as the Senate committee on Health and Education passed the legislation.

His struggle for improving health care for the poor goes back to early years of his tenure in the Senate. In 1966 he succeeded in getting federal funding that helped create 30 community health centers. He campaigned for continued federal aid for this program that resulted into opening up more than 1,200 such centers that serve the poor communities.

The last surviving icon of the most famous political family of America, Ted, as he was affectionately called by friends and admirers, served for 46 years as a Democrat, longer than his other two brothers, John and Robert Kennedy, both of whom were assassinated. He lived through much of the post World War political storm in America. His life was full of triumphs and tragedies. He witnessed the deaths of his brothers and three nephews and escaped his own death in a plane crash in 1964.

He paid for being reckless in life in more ways than one. He is considered responsible for the death of his female friend who drowned in water after the car they were riding skidded in the water. He swam to safely leaving her struggling in the submerged car. He didn't report the accident to police for nine hours. This was an episode that followed him later in his life and remained an obstacle in his bid for the presidency.

In 1979, he failed in his bid for the American presidency when he was defeated by Jimmy Carter in the Democratic primary. He never again announced any plan for announcing his candidature for the post. However, he won the re-election for the Senate in 1982 and focused to his responsibilities as a Senator. The following years turned into a glorious phase of his career. He fought successfully against Republican efforts to weaken the Voting Rights Act. He was instrumental in passing the civil rights measure to pass the Disabilities Act that required employer and public facilities to make accommodation for the disabled.

Edward Kennedy achieved a few milestones in changing the course of the US foreign relations. He was a vocal critic of the Vietnam War. He was one of the very few legislatures who voted against authorizing President Bush for the Iraq War. He led a Congressional effort to impose sanctions on South Africa over apartheid. He visited Northern Ireland to voice his support for a peaceful settlement of conflicts between the IRA and the Unionists. He took a bold stance against the genocide committed by Pakistan during the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971 despite the US government's opposition to Bangladesh's struggle for independence. The Democrat senator has been considered a true friend of Bangladesh since 1971, extending his support towards the country.

In 1972, Edward Kennedy visited the newly born Bangladesh. He planted a banyan tree at the Dhaka University campus. After his visit to the refugee camps, Kennedy continued raising his voice against the genocide of Pakistan criticizing official US stand that favored Pakistan against Bangladesh.

On August 17, 1971, the New York Times in its report titled "Kennedy, in India, Terms Pakistani Drive Genocide" said, "Mr Kennedy--who spent most of his time here visiting the squalid border camps that hold East Pakistani refugees, seven million of whom are said to have fled--said President Nixon's policy 'baffles me--and after seeing the results in terms of human misery, I think it's an even greater disaster'."

"Simply humanity demands that America and the United Nations must accept the truth that this heavy burden should be borne by the entire international community, and not by India alone," Kennedy said in the statement.

During the 2008 presidential election campaign Edward Kennedy's early endorsement of Barack Obama helped ensure the election of America's first Black President. President Obama recently awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Fighting with cancer he could foresee his death. He told friends recently that he was looking forward to a 'reunion' with his seven departed siblings, particularly his brothers, whose lives had been cut short. America and the world will always remember him for his bold stand in favor of the poor and the oppressed.