Image of the Kennedys talking to Rev. Baxton Bryant at Love Field

On the left side of the image, next to Rev. Baxton Bryant, who is speaking to the Kennedys, the hands and legs of someone sitting in a wheelchair can be seen. While the person's face is obstructed from view by a man's back, other photographs from this collection indicate the person in the wheelchair is probably Annie Dunbar, a Kennedy supporter. - Stephanie Allen-Givens, Collections and Exhibits Manager

In this photograph, President Kennedy is speaking with Rev. Baxton Bryant, then pastor of Elwood Methodist Church in Dallas. Prior to the Texas trip, Bryant vocally complained that Kennedy supporters were being snubbed by not receiving invitations to the Dallas Trade Mart luncheon. He even arranged a protest meeting for Kennedy supporters at the Dallas County Records Building in Dealey Plaza on Monday, November 18. Some sixty-three people attended. As evidenced by this photo, Bryant managed to personally greet President Kennedy at Love Field, where he told the president that Sen. Ralph Yarborough had provided a ticket for Bryant to attend the luncheon. In a 1989 interview, Bryant said that he "stayed up all night making the signs for the young grassroots Democrats," which are visible in many of the photographs taken at Dallas Love Field that day. After the Kennedy assassination, Bryant went on to challenge Dallas mayor Earle Cabell for the Democratic nomination for Congress in 1964. Cabell won the nomination and ultimately unseated Republican Bruce Alger. -- Stephen Fagin, Curator