Jean Kennedy Smith

Kennedy (known as Jean Kennedy Smith following her 1956 marriage to Stephen Edward Smith) was intricately involved with the political career of her older brother John. She worked on his 1946 Congressional campaign, his 1952 Senate campaign, and ultimately his presidential campaign in 1960. She and her siblings helped Kennedy knock on doors in primary states such as Texas and Wisconsin and on the campaign trail played the role of sister more than volunteer, citing her parents' family lesson of "working together for something."[11]

Smith and her husband were present at The Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles on June 5, 1968, during the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy after he had won the 1968 California Democratic primary.[12]

In 1974, Smith founded Very Special Arts,[13] now known as the Department of VSA and Accessibility at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. VSA provides arts and education programming for youth and adults with disabilities. As of 2011, VSA's programs reportedly served "some 276,000 students in 43 states and 52 countries".[14] Smith traveled extensively throughout the world on behalf of VSA to advocate for greater inclusion in the arts for people with disabilities. Her book, Chronicles of Courage: Very Special Artists, co-written with George Plimpton, was published by Random House in April 1993.[3]

In 1993, President Bill Clinton appointed Smith the U.S. Ambassador to Ireland,[15] continuing a legacy of diplomacy begun by her father, who was the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom during the administration of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt.[16] As ambassador, Smith played a pivotal role in the Northern Ireland peace process.[17] As a demonstration of her ecumenical views, on at least one occasion she received communion in a cathedral of the Church of Ireland, an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion.[18]

President of Ireland Mary McAleese conferred honorary Irish citizenship on Smith in 1998 in recognition of her service to the country.[19] During a ceremony, McAleese praised Smith's "fixedness of purpose". Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Bertie Ahern told Smith, "You have helped bring about a better life for everyone throughout Ireland."[13]

On July 4, 1998, about three months after the historic Good Friday Agreement of April 10, 1998, Smith retired as ambassador to Ireland.[20]

In 1994, Smith came to the forefront of American foreign policy when she championed the granting of a U.S. visa to Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams. Smith was lauded for her work in the region, but was criticized for supporting the visa. Her family have said this was a key step in the success of the peace process in the years that followed.[21] In her brother Ted's memoir, he described that "Jean was convinced that Adams no longer believed that continuing the armed struggle was the way to achieve the IRA's objective of a united Ireland," and that "It took only a couple of hours' conversation with Jean after we landed to discover what was the most important thing on her mind – the opportunity for a breakthrough in the Northern Ireland stalemate."[22] However, Irish Central later acknowledged that President Clinton had in fact made a promise during his presidential campaign to grant Adams a visa.[23] Adams also told the BBC in 2019 that Clinton led the Northern Ireland peace process and that during the peace process, Smith was following advice from west Belfast priest Father Alex Reid, stating "He [Fr Reid] was talking to her [Kennedy-Smith] on the side and she was talking to her brother Teddy [Kennedy]."[2]  

In March 1996, Smith was reprimanded by U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher for retaliating against two Foreign Service Officers at the Embassy of the United States in Dublin who had objected to her recommendation to the U.S. government to grant Adams the visa and had sent in a "Dissent Channel" message.[24] The Foreign Service Journal called the U.S. State Department's report on the matter "scathingly critical".[25] Her management of the embassy came under criticism by the Boston Herald in December 1996 when she reportedly pressured embassy staff to spend taxpayer money to refurbish her residence in Dublin.[26][27] Smith was also allegedly to have violated U.S. conflict-of-interest laws. The United States Department of Justice issued a press release on September 22, 2000, announcing that she had paid US$5,000 in a civil settlement to resolve the allegations.[28]

In 1998, in support of Irish President Mary McAleese, Smith took communion in an Irish Protestant cathedral in Dublin, in defiance of her Roman Catholic church.[29]