Kene Lecture Series

KENT — The auditorium at Kent Center School was overflowing with area residents who came to hear Colin Powell speak on July 3.The former U.S. secretary of state and retired U.S. Army general was the third and final speaker in the Kent Lecture Series, sponsored by the Kent Memorial Library. The theme of the series was “The New Soldiers: The American Military in the 21st Century.” Henry Kissinger, another former U.S. secretary of state and a resident of Kent, gave a brief introduction. Powell began his talk by saying that some time ago he received a beautiful handwritten letter from Nancy Kissinger (the wife of the former secretary of state) asking him to do one of the lectures. He did not respond immediately to her. One week later, Powell said, he received a typewritten letter from Henry Kissinger that said, “HELP! If you don’t do this, I’m toast.” Powell noted that it was appropriate for his talk to be held on the Fourth of July weekend, and he talked about the role of the military in maintaining freedom.“It is a pleasure to be here on the Fourth of July weekend, at the Kent Memorial Library, which was named in memory of those members of the U.S. military who gave their lives in World War I so others would not be enslaved and could have freedom. “The library is a memorial that reminds us that freedom does not come without cost, a cost that is measured in lives and sacrifice.”He told the story of several generals from the former Soviet Union visiting the United States. They were staying at an Army base on the West Coast — and were awakened by the shots fired as the U.S. flag was raised in the morning. The Russians jumped from their beds and ran to the window, fearing for their lives. They looked outside and saw cars stopped in the road, and people getting out and saluting the flag as it ascended the pole. One general turned to the others and said, “We’re finished.” That was shortly before the Soviet Union collapsed, Powell said.In talking about his own childhood, Powell said his parents could not afford books, so he became a regular at his local Hunts Point library in the South Bronx, where he discovered the world through reading. Referring to Gen. William “Kip” Ward, who was the lecture series speaker on June 5, Powell said, “I think back on what I had to face as a black soldier just 50 years ago and feel it is incredible that you invited two black four-star generals here to speak to you.”Recalling his early years, Powell said he is often asked when he graduated from West Point.“I did not attend West Point. I did not attend Texas A&M or the Virginia Military Institute or The Citadel. I went to City University of New York.”Powell said he wasn’t a very good student at CUNY — but his ROTC grades were all As. That pointed him to the Army, where he became an infantry soldier and then rose through the ranks. Powell became a U.S. Army general at age 42, and 10 years later was promoted to four-star general.After speaking for about an hour, Powell invited questions from the audience. When asked why he never went into politics, he replied, “In 1995, I gave it serious thought but understood that deep inside myself, I lacked the passion for politics that is necessary to be successful. It was not only that my family did not approve of such a move, but — more importantly — I did not feel it was right for me.”In response to a question about the Arab Spring in the Middle East, Powell said it was his opinion these uprisings were not political, but economic; that oppressed people yearn for the basic opportunity of the freedom to earn a decent living, provide for their families, get good medical care and educate their children.At the end of the questions, the audience applauded Powell for several minutes.