WHERE IS MARY JO KOPECHNE'S EULOGY?

It has been more than 40 years since the tragic death of Mary Jo Kopechne on July 18, 1969. She was only 28 years old, and was a dedicated civil rights activist and political talent with a bright future.

An op-ed in VANITY FAIR:


WHERE IS MARY JO KOPECHNE'S EULOGY?
By Henry Rollins, August 27, 2009

Not Far Under The Surface. Let’s say I am driving myself and a passenger in my car at night. I accidentally drive off a bridge into the water below. I am able to get out of the submerged vehicle but for some reason, I am unable to free the passenger.

I gather two friends, a relative and my lawyer and return to the scene. We are unable to rescue the person trapped in the car. Several hours later, myself nor the two others I took to the site have called the authorities. In fact, it’s two fishermen who find the car the next morning as even then, no one has been called to the scene.

The car is removed from the water and it is determined that its occupant is dead. This tragic incident is made international news by my circumstances. I am very well known, a United States senator. My family is incredibly powerful. There are allegations that I had been drinking heavily hours up to the time I got into the vehicle with the passenger. I deny this for the rest of my life.

That at no point did I make an attempt to call for rescue would probably be considered by many people to be outrageous and horrible, perhaps a crime that would carry a prison sentence. Can you imagine what the parents of the deceased would be going through when they found out that their 28-year-old daughter died alone in total darkness?

I serve no time. Not inconvenienced by the burdensome obstacle of incarceration, I seek to maintain my elected position. I am successful and remain a senator for the next four decades. Would any deed I performed in that time, besides going to prison for the negligent homicide I committed all those years ago, be enough to wipe the slate clean?

After my passing, would you fail to mention the incident and the death of this innocent person in reviewing the events of my long and lauded life?

You wouldn't forget about her, would you? That would be negligent.


Boston.com has an excellent video: