THE MANY FACES OF A PEACEMAKER:

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THE MANY FACES OF A PEACEMAKER ADLAI STEVENSON
AND THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS
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THE CUBAN MISSILE CRISIS WHAT HAPPENED?

• On October 16, 1962 President John F. Kennedy
  received photographic evidence of the placement
  of missiles in Soviet-aligned Cuba, just 90 miles
  from the U.S. shoreline
• This action triggered a crisis between the Cold
  War superpowers, the Soviet Union and the United
  States, that could have possibly resulted in
  nuclear war and worldwide apocalypse
• Through compromise and strategic planning,
  specifically on the American side with the use of
  Executive Committee of the National Security
  Council (EXCOMM), the two countries leaders
  averted disaster

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WHO WAS ADLAI STEVENSON?

• Adlai Stevenson, former Governor of Illinois and
  two-time Presidential candidate, was a darling
  to the left side of politics and a longtime
  respected leader of the Democratic party
• Under the Kennedy administration, Stevenson
  became the United States Ambassador to the United
  Nations and a member of EXCOMM, the select group
  of close advisors that helped President Kennedy
  shape the policies of the Cuban Missile Crisis
• Although public opinion may remember Stevenson
  for his Courtroom of World Opinion Speech,
  where he finally told the Soviet Union off,
  Stevensons role in the Cuban Missile Crisis, in
  reality, included a more extensive participation

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THESIS
Best known for his liberal and conciliatory
manner, Adlai Stevenson showed a more aggressive
side in the Cuban Missile Crisis during his UN
battle with Ambassador Zorin from the Soviet
Union. However, this part of his participation
in the Crisis proved how much Stevenson dedicated
himself and his performance to peace. He fought
against Zorin with a tough and anti-Stevenson
vigor because his performance crucially helped
the American case in the Crisis. Furthermore,
every way which Stevenson participated in the
Crisis helped move the Cold War enemies more
towards peace. Whether he played the role of the
idealist, the messenger, the negotiator, the
warrior, or the closer, his presence in the
Crisis, despite many historians label of
Stevenson as a peripheral player, greatly
impacted the resolution of the Crisis. However,
his last role, as the victim, also showed how the
Crisis impacted him. Still, even his part as the
victim proved he wanted peace above anything
elseenough for others to use his peacemaker
persona as a tool for criticism.
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THE FACES OF STEVENSON
THE IDEALIST
THE MESSENGER

THE NEGOTIATOR
THE WARRIOR
THE CLOSER
THE VICTIM
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PRIMARY RESOURCES
SECONDARY LITERATURE
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THE CONCLUSION TO STEVENSON AND THE CRISIS
In the end, peace was made. Stevenson the
Peacemaker could count his role as a success
although the Munich attack took away the twinkle
in his eye that surfaced after his Courtroom of
World Opinion speech. Stevenson, the Cuban
Missile Crisis Peacemaker, paid dearly for the
policies he fought to install, making him a true
martyr for peace. Was it worth it? Stevenson
thought so. As he stated, Peace is always
worthwhile.
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THANK YOU.Prepared by Emily Fuller