John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Address: On This Day, January 20, 1961

President John F. Kennedy was inaugurated on January 20, 1961. Elected in the midst of the Cold War, Kennedy focused his inaugural address on international politics and America’s place in the world. Kennedy appealed to both American citizens and people of other nations to come together in a struggle against "the common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease and war itself." He closed his speech with the now famous words:

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

For more on presidential address throughout American history, check out History Now 36: "Great Inaugural Addresses."