Speech on the Challenger Disaster, January 28, 1986
Ronald Reagan's abilities as a political leader will long be
debated. His ability to raise to an emotional public occasion
can hardly be doubted. His speech at the memorial for the crew
of the Challenger Shuttle, all killed in full public view during
the launch, was a masterpiece.
Nineteen years ago, almost to the day, we lost three astronauts
in a terrible accident on the ground. But, we've never lost an
astronaut in flight; we've never had a tragedy like this. And
perhaps we've forgotten the courage it took for the crew of the
shuttle; but they, the Challenger Seven, were aware of the dangers,
but overcame them and did their jobs brilliantly. We mourn seven
heroes: Michael Smith, Dick Scobee, Judith Resnik, Ronald McNair,
Ellison Onizuka, Gregory Jarvis, and Christa McAuliffe. We mourn
their loss as a nation together.
For the families of the seven, we cannot bear, as you do, the
full impact of this tragedy. But we feel the loss, and we're thinking
about you so very much. Your loved ones were daring and brave,
and they had that special grace, that special spirit that says,
'Give me a challenge and I'll meet it with joy.' They had a hunger
to explore the universe and discover its truths. They wished to
serve, and they did. They served all of us.
We've grown used to wonders in this century. It's hard to dazzle
us. But for twenty-five years the United States space program
has been doing just that. We've grown used to the idea of space,
and perhaps we forget that we've only just begun. We're still
pioneers. They, the members of the Challenger crew, were pioneers.
And I want to say something to the schoolchildren of America who
were watching the live coverage of the shuttle's takeoff. I know
it is hard to understand, but sometimes painful things like this
happen. It's all part of the process of exploration and discovery.
It's all part of taking a chance and expanding man's horizons.
The future doesn't belong to the fainthearted; it belongs to the
brave. The Challenger crew was pulling us into the future, and
we'll continue to follow them...
There's a coincidence today. On this day 390 years ago, the great
explorer Sir Francis Drake died aboard ship off the coast of Panama.
In his lifetime the great frontiers were the oceans, and a historian
later said, 'He lived by the sea, died on it, and was buried in
it.' Well, today we can say of the Challenger crew: Their dedication
was, like Drake's, complete.
The crew of the space shuttle Challenger honored us by the manner
in which they lived their lives. We will never forget them, nor
the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for
the journey and waved goodbye and 'slipped the surly bonds of
earth' to 'touch the face of God.'
Source:
This text is part of the Internet Modern History Sourcebook.
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(c)Paul Halsall May 1998
