Over six decades after the assassination of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy, the Trump administration released approximately 2,200 previously classified documents this week, totaling over 63,000 pages. The records, published by the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, mark a milestone in public access to one of America’s most scrutinized historical events.
Former President Donald Trump announced the release during a visit to Washington’s John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, stating, "People have been waiting for decades for this." While he initially cited an estimated 80,000 pages, the published files provide fresh material for historians and enthusiasts alike to re-examine the 1963 Dallas motorcade shooting that shocked the world.
Lee Harvey Oswald, arrested as the lone gunman, was himself fatally shot two days later, fueling persistent conspiracy theories about government cover-ups and foreign involvement. Though most of the National Archives’ 6 million-page collection had been disclosed earlier, this release aligns with a January executive order by Trump to declassify remaining files tied to JFK, Robert F. Kennedy, and civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
Scholars and analysts are now scrutinizing the documents for new insights, potentially reshaping public understanding of Cold War-era U.S. politics.
