Perhaps President’s Kennedy’s finest oration moment was his Ich Bin Ein Berliner speech – a notable moment of the Cold War. Delivered in front of the Berlin Wall in 1963, the speech provided a morale boost for West Berliners who feared an imminent East German occupation.
“Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was civis Romanus sum [I am a Roman citizen]. Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is ‘Ich bin ein Berliner!’… All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words ‘Ich bin ein Berliner!’
Okay, so technical speaking what JFK told those German’s that summer day nearly 50 years ago actually meant: “I am a Jelly Donut” (No kidding, look it up). However, the crowd understood what the young president was speaking about and so did the Soviet Union.