Ethel Kennedy, a human rights activist and widow of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, died Thursday after suffering a stroke and being hospitalized last week. She was 96 years old.
Her death was announced by her grandson Joe Kennedy III in a post on X.
“It is with loving hearts that we announce the passing of our wonderful grandmother, Ethel Kennedy. She passed away this morning from complications from a stroke she suffered last week. Our mother had a lifelong commitment to social justice and human rights. Throughout her life, she leaves behind nine children, 34 grandchildren, 24 great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews, all of whom loved her dearly.” said the Massachusetts congressman.
“She was a devout Catholic and we communicated on a daily basis. And we know that she has been reunited with the love of her life, our father Robert F. Kennedy. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers. Her children David and Michael. Her grandchildren Maeve and Saoirse.
Born Ethel Skakel in Chicago on April 11, 1928, Kennedy's life was marked by tragedy even before Sirhan Sirhan shot her husband to death while running for president in 1968, leaving her a widow. NBC News report.
(File/Original Caption) Robert Francis Kennedy and his bride, the former Ethel Skakel, and the groom's sister Eunice Kennedy, who served as a bridesmaid at the wedding, attend a lavish reception at the Skakel mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut and enjoys joking around. Young Kennedy and his bride were married in a lavish ceremony at St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, attended by many prominent socialites. He is the son of former Ambassador to the United Kingdom Joseph P. Kennedy. Young people go on a honeymoon to Hawaii. (Getty)
Kennedy's parents, coal magnate George Skakel and his wife Anne Branach Skakel, both died in a 1955 plane crash.
She was at Robert F. Kennedy's side when he was shot to death in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles on June 5, 1968, shortly after winning California's Democratic presidential primary.
Her brother-in-law, President John F. Kennedy, had been assassinated in Dallas less than five years earlier.
In 2019, she grieved again after her granddaughter Saoirse Kennedy Hill died of an apparent drug overdose, the Associated Press reported. report.
(File/Original Caption) Sen. Edward Kennedy (back) stands behind former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy's widow, Mrs. Ethel Kennedy (second from left), their five children, and his wife. Joanne (right) pauses at the Capitol at the grave of assassinated President John F. Kennedy at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, November 20, 1970. (AP Photo/Bob Daugherty, File)
“It's strange how much this family is expected to absorb,” said Philip Johnson, founder of the Robert F. Kennedy Foundation and a family friend. boston herald After the death of Michael Kennedy.
The Kennedy patriarch includes children Kathleen, Joseph II, Robert Jr., David, Courtney, Michael, Kelly, Christopher, Max, Douglas, and Rory, and is the last remaining member of the generation that included President John F. Kennedy. I was one of them.
Her family said that before she became ill, she had recently enjoyed seeing many relatives.
The Associated Press contributed to this article
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