Ethel Kennedy, human rights advocate and widow of Robert F. Kennedy, dies at 96

It is with our hearts full of love that we announce the passing of our amazing grandmother, Ethel Kennedy. She died this morning from complications related to a stroke suffered last week. Along with a lifetime's work in social justice and human rights, our mother leaves behind…

— Joe Kennedy III (@joekennedy) October 10, 2024

Ethel campaigned for John F. Kennedy in his 1946 campaign for US Congress. Ethel Kennedy, who lost her husband, Robert F. Kennedy, and brother-in-law, President John F. Kennedy, to assassins' bullets, and who channeled her grief into raising her 11 children and pursuing a lifetime of public service, died Thursday. She was 96.

Kennedy died from complications from a stroke she suffered last week, former Rep. Joe Kennedy III, D-Mass., a grandson, said in a statement posted on X.

"It is with our hearts full of love that we announce the passing of our amazing grandmother, Ethel Kennedy," the former congressman said.
Joe Kennedy wrote that his grandmother "was a devout Catholic and a daily communicant."

"We are comforted in knowing she is reunited with the love of her life, our father, Robert F. Kennedy," he wrote.

"Along with a lifetime’s work in social justice and human rights, our mother leaves behind nine children, 34 grandchildren, and 24 great-grandchildren, along with numerous nieces and nephews, all of whom love her dearly."