Question

Read this excerpt from Kennedy's address to the nation on June 11, 1963, and answer the question.

We are confronted primarily with a moral issue. It is as old as the scriptures and as clear as the American Constitution. The heart of the question is whether all Americans are to be afforded equal rights and equal opportunities. Are we to say to the world, and much more importantly, to each other, that this is a land of the free, except for the Negroes, that we have no second-class citizens, except Negroes, that we have no class or caste system, no ghettoes, no master race except with respect to Negroes? Now the time has come for this nation to fulfill its promise.

Source: http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=129482
What idea does Kennedy suggest with his repeated use of the word ‘except’ in this excerpt?

that predictions about worsening race relations have not been accurate
that moral and political arguments have exceptions which make them unconvincing
that exceptional (i.e., special) people deserve greater freedom and rights
that there should be no exceptions for freedom and civil rights being equally provided to all

Answer 1

Answer:

D. There should be no exceptions for freedom and civil rights being equally provided to all.

Explanation:

I'm not entirely sure how to explain an answer like this, but I will try my best.

For A, there is no indication in the address that this is what Kennedy is referring to. Definitively, Kennedy's "except"s are not referring to this. A is incorrect.

For B, again, there is no indication that Kennedy's "except"s are referring to an argument's exceptions. The speech is about racial differences, and inequality. B is incorrect.

For C, this, in theory, could be what the speech is about—however, Kennedy is talking more about how those who have been excepted from freedom and equality, for instance, should be included in that category. C is incorrect.

For D, this answer is most accurate. As mentioned above, Kennedy is arguing for all classes, categories, etc, of people to be included in the infamous phrase from the Constitution. That makes D correct.