MikhailT/lj-speech huggingface dataset:
Some idea of what he thought was sufficient reason for such an act may be found in the nature of the motive that he stated for his attack on General Walker.
Marina Oswald indicated that her husband had compared General Walker to Adolph Hitler.
She testified that Oswald said that General Walker, quote, was a very bad man, that he was a fascist,
that he was the leader of a fascist organization, and when I said that even though all of that might be true, just the same he had no right to take his life,
The Warren Commission Report. By The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy. Chapter 7.
Lee Harvey Oswald: Background and Possible Motives, Part 5.
Political Activities
Oswald's political activities after his return to the United States center around his interest in Cuba and in the Fair Play for Cuba Committee.
Although, as indicated above, the Commission has been unable to find any credible evidence
that he was involved in any conspiracy, his political activities do provide insight into certain aspects of Oswald's character
and into his possible motivation for the assassination.
While it appears that he may have distributed Fair Play for Cuba Committee materials on one uneventful occasion in Dallas sometime during the period
April 6 to 24, 1963 Oswald's first public identification with that cause was in New Orleans.
There, in late May and early June of 1963, under the name Lee Osborne,
he had printed a handbill headed in large letters, quote,
Hands Off Cuba, end quote, an application form for, and a membership card in,
the New Orleans branch of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee.
He first distributed his handbills and other material uneventfully in the vicinity of the U.S.S. Wasp,
which was berthed at the Dumaine Street wharf in New Orleans, on June 16, 1963.
He distributed literature in downtown New Orleans on August 9, 1963,
and was arrested because of a dispute with three anti-Castro Cuban exiles, and again on August 16, 1963.
Following his arrest, he was interviewed by the police, and at his own request, by an agent of the FBI.
On August 17, 1963, he appeared briefly on a radio program and on August 21, 1963,
he debated over radio station WDSU, New Orleans, with Carlos Bringuier,
one of the Cuban exiles who had been arrested with him on August 9. Bringuier claimed that on August 5, 1963,
Oswald had attempted to infiltrate an anti-Castro organization with which he was associated.
While Oswald publicly engaged in the activities described above, his, quote, organization, end quote, was a product of his imagination.
The imaginary president of the nonexistent chapter was named A. J. Hidell, the name that Oswald used when he purchased the assassination weapon.
Marina Oswald said she signed that name, apparently chosen because it rhymed with "Fidel,"
to her husband's membership card in the New Orleans chapter.
She testified that he threatened to beat her if she did not do so. The chapter had never been chartered by the national FPCC organization.
It appears to have been a solitary operation on Oswald's part in spite of his misstatements to the New Orleans police that it had 35 members,
5 of which were usually present at meetings which were held once a month.
Oswald's Fair Play for Cuba activities may be viewed as a very shrewd political operation
in which one man single handedly created publicity for his cause or for himself.
It is also evidence of Oswald's reluctance to describe events accurately
and of his need to present himself to others as well as to himself in a light more favorable than was justified by reality.
This is suggested by his misleading and sometime untruthful statements in his letters to Mr. V. T. Lee,
then national director of FPCC. In one of those letters, dated August 1, 1963,
Oswald wrote that an office which he had previously claimed to have rented for FPCC activities had been, quote,
promptly closed 3 days later for some obscure reasons by the renters,
they said something about remodeling, etc. I'm sure you understand, end quote.
He wrote that, quote, thousands of circulars were distributed, end quote.
and that he continued to receive inquiries through his post office box which he endeavored, quote, to keep answering to the best of my ability, end quote.
In his letter to V. T. Lee,
he stated that he was then alone in his efforts on behalf of FPCC, but he attributed his lack of support
to an attack by Cuban exiles in a street demonstration and being, quote, officialy cautioned, end quote, by the police.
events which, quote, robbed me of what support I had leaving me alone, end quote.
that anyone ever attacked any street demonstration in which Oswald was involved, except for the Bringuier incident mentioned above,
which occurred 8 days after Oswald wrote the above letter to V. T. Lee.
Bringuier, who seemed to be familiar with many anti-Castro activities in New Orleans, was not aware of any such incident.
Police reports also fail to reflect any activity on Oswald's part prior to August 9, 1963,
except for the uneventful distribution of literature at the Dumaine Street wharf in June.
Furthermore, the general tenor of Oswald's next letter to V. T. Lee,
in which he supported his report on the Bringuier incident with a copy of the charges made against him
and a newspaper clipping reporting the event, suggests that his previous story of an attack by Cuban exiles was at least greatly exaggerated.
While the legend, quote, FPCC, 544 Camp Street New Orleans, Louisiana, end quote,
was stamped on some literature that Oswald had in his possession at the time of his arrest in New Orleans,
extensive investigation was not able to connect Oswald with that address, although it did develop the fact
that an anti-Castro organization had maintained offices there for a period ending early in 1962.
The Commission has not been able to find any other indication that Oswald had rented an office in New Orleans.
In view of the limited amount of public activity on Oswald's part before August 9, 1963,
there also seems to be no basis for his claim that he had distributed, quote,
thousands, end quote, of circulars, especially since he had claimed to have printed only 2,000
and actually had only 1,000 printed.
In addition, there is no evidence that he received any substantial amount of materials from the national headquarters.
In another letter to V. T. Lee, dated August 17, 1963,
Oswald wrote that he had appeared on Mr. William Stuckey's 15-minute television program over WDSU-TV called, quote,
Latin American Focus, end quote,
as a result of which he was, quote, flooded with callers and invitations to debates, etc. as well as people interested in joining the F.P.C.C.
New Orleans branch, end quote.
WDSU has no program of any kind called, quote, Latin American Focus, end quote.
Stuckey had a radio program called, quote, Latin Listening Post, end quote,
on which Oswald was heard for less than 5 minutes on August 17, 1963.
It appears that Oswald had only one caller in response to all of his FPCC activities,
an agent of Bringuier's attempting to learn more about the true nature
of the alleged FPCC, quote, organization, end quote, in New Orleans.
Oswald's statements suggest that he hoped to be flooded with callers and invitations to debate.
This would have made him a real center of attention as he must have been when he first arrived in the Soviet Union
and as he was to some extent when he returned to the United States.
was apparently not enough to satisfy him. He exaggerated in his letters to V. T. Lee in an apparent attempt
to make himself and his activities appear far more important than they really were.
His attempt to express himself through his Fair Play for Cuba activities, however,
was greatly impeded by the fact that the radio debate over WDSU on August 21, 1963,
brought out the history of his defection to the Soviet Union.
The basic facts of the event were uncovered independently by William Stuckey, who arranged the debate, and Edward Butler,
executive director of the Information Council of the Americas, who also appeared on the program.
Oswald was confronted with those facts at the beginning of the debate and was so thrown on the defensive by this that he was forced to state that
Fair Play for Cuba was, quote, not at all Communist controlled regardless of the fact that I had the experience of living in Russia, end quote.
Stuckey testified that uncovering Oswald's defection was very important, quote,
I think that we finished him on that program because we had publicly linked the Fair Play for Cuba Committee
with a fellow who had lived in Russia for 3 years and who was an admitted Marxist.
The interesting thing, or rather the danger involved, was the fact that Oswald seemed like such a nice, bright boy
and was extremely believable before this. We thought the fellow could probably get quite a few members if he was really indeed serious about getting members.
We figured after this broadcast of August 21, why, that was no longer possible, end quote.
In spite of the fact that Oswald had been surprised and was on the defensive throughout the debate, according to Stuckey, quote,
Mr. Oswald handled himself very well, as usual, end quote.
Stuckey thought Oswald, quote, appeared to be a very logical, intelligent fellow, end quote, and, quote, was arrested by his cleancutness, end quote.
He did not think Oswald looked like the, quote, type, end quote, that he would have expected to find associating with a group such as the Fair Play for Cuba Committee.
Stuckey thought that Oswald acted very much as would a young attorney.
Following the disclosure of his defection, Oswald sought advice from the Communist Party, U.S.A., concerning his Fair Play for Cuba activity.
He had previously sent, apparently unsolicited, to the Party newspaper, the Worker,
samples of his photographic work, offering to contribute that sort of service without charge.
The Worker replied, quote, Your kind offer is most welcomed and from time to time we shall call on you, end quote.
He later wrote to another official of the Worker, seeking employment, and mentioning the praise he had received for submitting his photographic work.
He presented Arnold Johnson, Gus Hall,
and Benjamin J. Davis honorary membership cards in his nonexistent New Orleans chapter of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee,
and advised them of some of his activities on behalf of the organization.
Arnold Johnson, director of the information and lecture bureau of the Communist Party, U.S.A., replied stating, quote,
It is good to know that movements in support of fair play for Cuba has developed in New Orleans as well as in other cities.
We do not have any organizational ties with the Committee, and yet there is much material that we issue from time to time that is important
for anybody who is concerned about developments in Cuba, end quote,
Marina Oswald said that such correspondence from people he considered important meant much to Oswald.
After he had begun his Cuban activity in New Orleans, quote,
he received a letter from somebody in New York, some Communist -- probably from New York -- I am not sure from where -- from some Communist leader and he was very happy,
he felt that this was a great man that he had received the letter from, end quote.
Since he seemed to feel that no one else understood his political views, the letter was of great value to him for it, quote, was proof
that there were people who understood his activity, end quote.
He anticipated that the full disclosure of his defection would hinder him in, quote, the struggle for progress and freedom in the United States, end quote.
into which Oswald, in his own words, had, quote, thrown himself. He sought advice from the central committee of the Communist Party, U.S.A.,
in a letter dated August 28, 1963, about whether he could, quote, continue to fight,
handicapped as it were, by my past record and compete with anti-progressive forces, above-ground or whether in your opinion
I should always remain in the background, i.e. underground, end quote.
Stating that he had used his "position" with what he claimed to be the local branch of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee to, quote, foster communist ideals, end quote,
Oswald wrote that he felt that he might have compromised the FPCC and expressed concern lest, quote, Our opponents could use my background
of residence in the U.S.S.R. against any cause which I join, by association,
they could say the organization of which I am a member, is Russian controlled, etc, end quote.
In reply Arnold Johnson advised Oswald that, while as an American citizen he had a right to participate in such organizations as he wished, quote,
there are a number of organizations, including possibly Fair Play, which are of a very broad character,
and often it is advisable for some people to remain in the background, not underground, end quote.
By August of 1963, after a short 3 months in New Orleans, the city in which he had been born and had lived most of his early life,
Oswald had fallen on difficult times.
He had not liked his job as a greaser of coffee processing machinery and he held it for only a little over 2 months.
He had not found another job. His wife was expecting their second child in October and there was concern about the cost which would be involved.
His brief foray on behalf of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee had failed to win any support.
While he had drawn some attention to himself and had actually appeared on two radio programs, he had been attacked by Cuban exiles and arrested,
an event which his wife thought upset him and as a result of which, quote, he became less active, he cooled off a little, end quote.
More seriously, the facts of his defection had become known, leaving him open to almost unanswerable attack by those who opposed his views.
It would not have been possible to have followed Arnold Johnson's advice to remain in the background,
since there was no background to the New Orleans FPCC, quote, organization, end quote, which consisted solely of Oswald.
Furthermore, he had apparently not received any letters from the national headquarters of FPCC since May 29, 1963,
even though he had written four detailed letters since that time to Mr. V. T. Lee and had also kept the national headquarters informed
of each of his changes of mailing address.
Those events no doubt had their effects on Oswald.
Interest in Cuba
By August of 1963, Oswald had for some time been considering the possibility of leaving the United States again.
On June 24, 1963, he applied for a new passport
and in late June or early July he told his wife that he wanted to return to the Soviet Union with her. She said that he was extremely upset,
very unhappy, and that he actually wept when he told her that.
He said that nothing kept him in the United States, that he would not lose anything if he returned to the Soviet Union, that he wanted to be with her
and that it would be better to have less and not have to be concerned about tomorrow.