False claim: JFK warned about a plot to enslave Americans seven days before his assassination

Update May 21, 2020: This article has been updated to reflect that disclose.tv has since added information from this check to the discussion thread.

Posts shared widely on Facebook claim that President John F. Kennedy said, “There’s a plot in this country to enslave every man, woman and child. Before I leave this high and noble office, I intend to expose this plot”, one week before he was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas. This quote appears to be fabricated. Reuters found no evidence Kennedy ever said this.

Examples of such posts can be found here , here and here .

The posts link to a thread ( here ) on the website Disclose.tv, which describes itself as “an online community and a public discussion platform where like-minded members help each other to gain true insight into what is actually happening as the world becomes increasingly complex”. It also claims to “advocate the freedom of humans for evolutionary self-determination, through liberating oppressed knowledge and disclosing hidden secrets purposely and unlawfully concealed or simply forgotten over time” ( www.disclose.tv/about-us ). The thread describes JFK’s alleged final speech as a “Warning About The Illuminati & New World Order.” Since this fact check was published, the thread now carries an information box summarising the information provided here .

Reuters could not corroborate that President Kennedy ever said these words publicly. The quote is not included in any of the speeches ( here ) or press conferences ( here ) provided by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum website. On November 15, 1963, seven days before his death, Kennedy made remarks in New York City at the national convention of the Catholic Youth Organization ( here ) and the fifth constitutional convention of the American Federation of Labor, Congress of Industrial Organization (AFL-CIO) ( here ). Neither speech included the quote shared in the Facebook posts.

The JFK Presidential Library confirmed to Reuters via email they are unaware of this quote existing in any of their records.

VERDICT

False. There is no evidence to suggest that seven days prior to his assassination John F. Kennedy warned about a plot to enslave all Americans, which he promised to expose before leaving office.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our work to fact-check social media posts   here  . 

*** This article has been archived for your research. The original version from Reuters can be found here ***