Remarks to the Assembly of the Organization of American States.

Mr. President, Your Excellencies, my fellow Americans:

I can use that term, "my fellow Americans" and cover everybody in this room. And this is the only international group in which I can do so.

As I speak to my fellow Americans today, I first want to thank the President of this organization for his very warm and friendly comments. And in responding to those comments, I first want to establish a personal bond of communication with all of you here--or should I say reestablish it with you.

As I came into this building today, I recalled those many occasions when my wife and I were here and when you were gracious enough to allow us to use your home as the Vice President's place to entertain distinguished visitors from abroad.

My memory went back to not only many visits to this building, but visits to every one of the countries in this hemisphere.

Of all the international organizations that I have addressed, including the NATO Ministers, this statement can only be made with regard to the Organization of American States.

I am very fortunate to have had the opportunity to know each of the countries represented here personally from having visited each of those countries. And I only hope that in the years that I am in office I shall have the opportunity to return and to visit many or, I hope, all of those countries in the future.

But as I speak to you today, I want, too, to speak from my heart with regard to the feeling that I have personally insofar as our American family is concerned.

I come from the State of California. I was born in a little town of Yorba Linda. It had, of course, not only a Spanish name but a great Spanish tradition and background.

My wife and I, in the year 1940--as you see her now she must have been a child bride--we took our honeymoon in Mexico. And 25 years later we returned with our two daughters for our anniversary trip to Mexico.

During the years that I have visited each of your countries, I have had some very interesting experiences. I know that the international press has tended to build up those experiences that have at times been difficult. But I can assure everyone in this room that my memories and the memories of my wife are not of those few who may have been unfriendly, but of the thousands of friendly faces we saw; and that we shall always take with us and we shall always remember as we attempt to develop our new policies for the future.

But having spoken, as I have deliberately done so warmly, about my personal affection for the countries represented in this room and the people represented in the countries among our neighbors to the south, I now want to speak very candidly and very honestly about some of the problems with which we are presently confronted.

I think there has been a tendency, in examining the relations of the United States with our friends to the south, to smother the problems that we have with fine slogans, beautiful rhetoric, and sometimes with abrazos.

I think there is a place for a fine slogan and always there is a place for eloquent language. And I would not underplay, certainly, the importance of that kind of relationship on a dignified basis between nations and the leaders of nations.

But at the present time, the problems we confront in this hemisphere are too serious to be glossed over simply by the usual slogans and the words and the gestures of the past. What we need is a new policy. What we need are new programs. What we need are new approaches.

I would like to describe those policies today, not with a new 'slogan, because I have none--none that I think would be appropriate to the challenge that we face.

But I would like to describe our approach in this way: Sometimes the new administration has been described as an open administration. I hope we can live up to that particular description. But if I were to set forth the objectives for our approach to the problems of this hemisphere, it would be in these words: I want our policies to be ones which are derived from open eyes, open ears, open minds, and open hearts.

Let me be specific on each of those particular items. When I speak of open eyes, I mean that it is necessary for us to look at our common problems without any of the prejudices that we may have had in the past and without being imprisoned by the policies of the past or without perpetuating the mistakes of the past.

The President of this organization has referred to Governor Rockefeller and the trip that he will be taking--or several trips, I should say--to this hemisphere in the months ahead.

On that trip, as Governor Rockefeller will tell each of the Ambassadors assembled here today, he is going with open eyes and open ears. He is not going there to tell the people in the various countries that he will visit what the United States wants them to do. But he is going there to listen to them and to hear what they believe we can do together.

I think there has been too much of a tendency in the past for the discussion to get down to this point: What will the United States do for Latin America?

The question, otherwise, I think should be put--and this is the approach of the Rockefeller mission, it is the approach of the Secretary of State, the new Assistant Secretary of State, Charles Meyer. Our approach is this: Not what do we do for Latin America, what do we do with Latin America? What do we do together?

We want, therefore, to have open eyes and we also have open ears. We want to hear from our friends in each of the countries represented what you think is wrong with our policy, but also what you think you can do with us to develop a better policy.

And we, fortunately, approach this problem with no preconceived notions as to the policies of the past.

One of the reasons that we must also have open minds is that there sometimes is a tendency to become wedded to a program because it has a popular connotation. I speak of the Alliance for Progress, a great concept.

And as I examined the effect of the Alliance for Progress on my last trip to Latin America, in which I covered most of the countries in that continent in 1967: I saw many areas where the Alliance for Progress had done much good.

On the other hand, when I looked at the overall statistics as to what has happened to the rate of growth in Latin America during the period of the Alliance for Progress as compared with the period immediately preceding the Alliance, and when I compared that rate of growth with the rates of growth in other areas of the world, I found a very disconcerting result.

And it very simply is this: The rate of growth is not fast enough. It has been approximately the same during the period of the Alliance as it was before the Alliance.

But even more significant, the rate of growth in Latin America overall--and of course there are some individual countries that are far ahead--but overall the rate of growth is less than the rate of growth in non-Communist Asia, and it is less, even, than the rate of growth in Communist Eastern Europe.

This is a result which we cannot tolerate. We must do better. We must find the ways and the means whereby we can move forward together in a more effective way.

And that is why I emphasize that we will have open eyes and open ears and open minds in attempting to find the answer.

But I emphasize at the last the most important element: We shall have open hearts--open hearts because no one can come here today, as my wife and I have, and to have sensed again the warm reception, the feeling that comes from the heart any time you come to an assemblage of this sort, no one can visit the countries of Latin America as we have on so many occasions without realizing how close our bonds are.

We are all part of the New World. We are all part of the American family. We come from the same traditions. We share the same concerns.

Simon Bolivar said 150 years ago that the "freedom of the New World is the hope of the universe." That was true then. I believe it is even more true today.

But then we have to make this freedom in the New World something which can be more meaningful to the millions of people not only in America, but in all the countries in this hemisphere so that there will be hope where there is now despair, so that there will be opportunity where there is now no chance for millions who simply want a chance--a chance not to receive but a chance simply on their own to make their own contribution both to their own welfare and to their country's welfare.

And as we think of this problem in that context, as we think how close our bonds are, I try to put it in the perspective of history. I think how long this organization has been in operation. And I look ahead just 33 years to the end of this century, less than that, 32 years, and I think of what this hemisphere--the New World--will be like at the end of this century. And I realize that if the present rates of growth that we have in the United States and in the balance of the hemisphere are not changed, at the end of this century the per capita income in the United States of America will be 15 times as high as that of the per capita income of our friends, our neighbors, the members of our family in the balance of the hemisphere.

This is something we cannot allow to happen. And it will require the best minds, it will require the best ideas that all of us can produce together.

So, Mr. President, as I come here today, let me say I was tempted simply to respond to your very gracious remarks with the response that I had in my heart, to express my appreciation for your welcome.

But I want you to know that we do consider the problems of this hemisphere to be of the highest priority. We do consider that whatever progress we have made has not been enough and for that reason we come here today asking your assistance in working with us so that we can find better solutions for those problems that we mutually have throughout the hemisphere.

Again, to all of you, my fellow Americans, our gratefulness for your warm reception, and I hope that this meeting may mark the beginning of a new era of cooperation, of consultation, but most important, of progress for all the members of our great American family.

Thank you.