Peace Corps Turns 58 Years Old
Today we’re celebrating Peace Corps Week (February 24 — March 2, 2019), noting President John F. Kennedy’s establishment of a Peace Corps pilot program by Executive Order 10924 on March 1, 1961.
The Peace Corps was a radical, yet simple idea — to promote American values, skills, and knowledge around the world, not through force or might, but through service to others. As President Kennedy stated when he signed the order,
We will only send abroad Americans who are wanted by the host country — who have a real job to do — and who are qualified to do that job. Programs will be developed with care, and after full negotiation, in order to make sure that the Peace Corps is wanted and will contribute to the welfare of other people. Our Peace Corps is not designed as an instrument of diplomacy or propaganda or ideological conflict. It is designed to permit our people to exercise more fully their responsibilities in the great common cause of world development.
- John F. Kennedy, Statement by the President upon Signing Order Establishing the Peace Corps — March 1,1961, 1961 Pub. Papers 134 (1961)
Response to the president’s Executive Order was swift. In the spring of 1961, S.2000, providing $40 million in appropriations was introduced in the Senate. On September 22, 1961, the Peace Corps Act, P.L. 87–293, 75 Stat. 612, was signed into law.
Just three months after signing the Executive Order, in a June 1, 1961, letter to Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, President Kennedy wrote,
The Peace Corps has already announced projects to be undertaken in Tanganyika, Columbia, and the Philippines, and others will be announced soon. Progress and planning to date has confirmed that there is a genuine and immediate need in many parts of the world…more than 8,500 Peace Corps Volunteer Questionnaires have been returned, and additional questionnaires are being received at a rate of more than 100 per day.
Click here to view the letter.
58 years later, Peace Corps volunteers serve in over 60 countries. They work in projects ranging from AIDS and malaria relief, education, environment, food stability, and youth development. Volunteers range from 18 years old to retirees, and some couples serve together.
The lasting effect of the Peace Corps can be heard in the stories of the people whose lives have been impacted by corps — both volunteers and residents of the countries served. The corps has captured many of these stories on their YouTube channel, website, and legacy project featuring Uganda Supreme Court Chief Justice Bart Katureebe.
To join in the celebration and hear more about the good work being done by the Peace Corps, view their 2019 Peace Corps Week Video Challenge. (JL)
