“maybe Kennedy will do a good job”

Stephanie May to Bertrand Russell

December 25, 1960

Stephanie May (1927-2003) and her husband, John May, were activists in the civil rights and peace movements in the United States in the 1950s and 1960s. Stephanie May’s connection with Russell began in earnest on Easter weekend, 1960, when she took part in the third annual Aldermaston anti-nuclear march that culminated in a gathering of tens of thousands at Trafalgar Square, London. The march had been organized by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, of which Russell was president. Russell addressed the crowd that weekend in the Square, as did May, bringing greetings from North America.

In December 1960, May sent Russell the holiday greeting card displayed here. It includes a photograph of May with her young children, Geoffrey and Elizabeth, and contains a hopeful message as John F. Kennedy begins his presidency. May says “maybe Kennedy will do a good job.”

There are more than 50 exchanges of cards and letters between Stephanie May and Russell in the Russell archives, beginning in 1959 and ending with May’s condolence card to Edith Russell following Russell’s death in 1970.

In 1973, the Mays moved with their children to Margaree Harbour on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. Elizabeth May would follow in her parents’ activist footsteps and has served as leader of the Green Party of Canada. She has been known to mention her mother and Bertrand Russell in her speeches.

Sources: (1) Bertrand Russell. The Autobiography of Bertrand Russell, 1944-1967 (Volume III). London: George Allen and Unwin Ltd., 1969. (2) Nicholas Griffin, ed. The Selected Letters of Bertrand Russell: The Public Years, 1914-1970. London and New York: Routledge, 2002. (3) Stephanie May obituary. Hartford Courant (26 August 2003). Retrieved from: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/hartfordcourant/obituary.aspx?n=stephanie-middleton-may&pid=1345098 (4) “The Life of Elizabeth May [slideshow]”. Huffington Post (9 October 2014). Retrieved from: https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/elizabeth-may/elizabeth-may-book_b_5953030.html#gallery/539803/1

GREETINGS FROM OUR HOUSE
TO YOUR HOUSE

[Includes photograph of Stephanie May with her children, Geoffrey and Elizabeth]

(over please)

Dear Lord and Lady Russell—

Rusk apparently is acceptable to Adlai – so I guess he’s all right. With Dean Rusk, Chester Bowles, and Adlai Stevenson working with him, maybe Kennedy will do a good job – Lord knows there’s room for improvement![1]

Wishing you both a happy and peaceful New Year.

With deep respect, gratitude, and affection,

Stephanie and John May

[1] May is referring to John F. Kennedy’s new presidency, and mentions three of his appointees: Dean Rusk, Secretary of State; Chester Bowles, foreign policy advisor and briefly Under Secretary of State; and Adlai Stevenson, Ambassador to the UN.

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Bertrand Russell Archives, Box 4.58, File 1, May, Stephanie. Used with permission of Elizabeth May. Copy provided for personal and research use only. For any other use, permission of the copyright holder is required.