“Since we can’t now bet on a winner, we should be hedging our bets and buying time.” President John F. Kennedy, domestic racial equality and apartheid South Africa in the early 1960s

Abstract

This article explores the calculated approach adopted by the John F. Kennedy Administration in formulating policy toward apartheid South Africa. The article will demonstrate that in a strategy which mirrored its approach toward the domestic racial question, the White House offered symbolic gestures to appease the newly independent African states but refused to engage in stronger actions that could lead to tangible change for fear of damaging ties with a vehemently anti-communist Cold War ally.