‘It cannot wait for the actions of the Congress or the courts. We face a moment of moral and constitutional crisis, and men of generosity and vision must make themselves heard in every section of this country.”

Fifty-six years ago, when the annual meeting of the U.S. Conference of Mayors was first held in Honolulu, President John F. Kennedy told the leaders of cities large and small that the shining goals of civil rights and racial equality would be won or lost in their towns, in their neighborhoods, in their local classrooms and on their city payrolls.

It was a powerful speech, one that is still quoted despite the outdated use of the word “men” to mean “all people.” Reading Kennedy’s words is a reminder of what America set out to do, what our country accomplished and where we still fall short. It is also a reminder of what Hawaii meant to all those visiting mayors.

That was the summer of the demonstrations in Birmingham, Ala., against segregated schools, the arrest of thousands of protesters, a scourge of terrible violence.

“It is clear to me that the time for token moves and talk is past,” President Kennedy said in Honolulu. “It is our responsibility, yours and mine, to see that they are won in a peaceful and constructive way and not won in the streets. The events in Birmingham have stepped up the tempo of the nationwide drive for full equality, and rising summer temperatures are often accompanied by rising human emotions.”

The president spoke of new civil rights legislation but said that the passages of laws was not enough. “Justice cannot wait for too many meetings,” he said.

So here we are, decades later, hotter than ever and still waiting. We have added different, more specific terms to discuss issues of equality — like social justice, human rights, women’s rights and pride — and we call racism by its name rather than tiptoe around “issues of race.” But there is so much still to be fixed.

The 1963 meeting put a spotlight on Hawaii as a place where races blended with little friction.

Detroit Mayor Jerome Cavanaugh, who attended the conference in ’63, said that in Honolulu, with its diverse population, he saw “many examples of racial harmony that could serve as a model for the nation.”

It’s a reputation that lingers today, even though we know the reality is more complicated. But we’re still an object of fascination or wishful thinking, judging by the long piece that ran in The New York Times on Sunday praising Hawaii’s diversity as an antidote to racism. The headline: “Want to be less racist? Move to Hawaii.”

If only that were true, then all the mayors who came to Waikiki last week could take home their pocket full of peace and spread it around like a salve. Kennedy spoke of giving “all Americans a fair chance for an equal life.” In 2019 we’re arguing what “all” means, what “fair” means, what “equal” means and what it means to be American.