The Bay Of Pigs: Lessons Learned

Overview

Goals/Rationale:
- Analyze President Kennedy's April 20, 1961 speech.
- Understand the Cold War context of the Bay of Pigs invasion.
- Evaluate how a speech can shift focus from a failed action towards future goals.
Essential Question: How can a public official address a failed policy or action positively?

Explain the US rationale for the Bay of Pigs invasion and reasons for its failure.
Analyze the tone and content of JFK's April 20, 1961 speech.
Evaluate JFK's methods in presenting the invasion positively.

The Bay of Pigs invasion was a failed attempt by US-backed Cuban exiles to overthrow Fidel Castro.
Initiated by President Eisenhower and approved by Kennedy.
Took place on April 17, 1961, with a force of 1,400 anti-Castro Cuban exiles.
The invasion was quickly defeated by Castro's forces.
Strengthened Castro's image and alignment with the Soviet Union.
Kennedy publicly accepted responsibility for the failure.
Despite the failure, Kennedy maintained high public approval.

Homework:
- Read the CIA webpage on the Bay of Pigs.
- Answer questions about US government's rationale, major mistakes, and responsibility.
In-class Activities:
- Group discussion of homework answers.
- Model a close reading of Kennedy's speech.
- Small group analysis of speech's content, tone, and emphasized words.
- Class debrief to compare initial thoughts with actual speech.

Write an essay evaluating how Kennedy's speech reframed the invasion as a learning experience.
Determine whether the speech was effective in the context of US foreign policy.

National History Standards: Cold War impacts on politics.
Common Core Standards: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening.
C3 Framework for Social Studies: History, evaluating sources, communicating conclusions.
Massachusetts Frameworks: English Language Arts, History and Social Science.