Last week, America was reintroduced to the late Jacqueline Kennedy in Diane Sawyer’s ABC News special, “Jacqueline Kennedy: In Her Own Words.”

The haunting two-hour special debuted never-before-heard recordings of Jackie from her time in the White House to just months after her husband’s assassination. She discussed the 1960s when the couple endured the pressures of John F. Kennedy’s presidency.

Kennedy spoke of both public and private times with her husband. Nearing the end of the documentary the tapes shed light on Kennedy’s thoughts on women in power.

“I think women should never be in politics,” said Kennedy in the tapes. “We’re just not suited to it.” She elaborated that women should take subordinate, more traditional roles in marriage — just as she did. Women were too emotional, she said.

Feminists probably fell out of their chairs. And they fell with good reason, considering this statement was coming out of an intelligent and outspoken woman. At the time of her recording, whether she realized it or not, she was a prominent woman in politics.

As the interview turned to the president’s rumored infidelity, things got even more interesting.

Many speculated JFK had multiple mistresses. Sawyer paraphrased a conversation Kennedy had with a friend, stating something like: Despite all the “others,” she was the one he really loved and came home to. That was enough for her to stay.

Our country has made major advancements since the time of Jackie’s recordings. However, one thing that hasn’t changed is people accepting and living through relationships poisoned with infidelity.

According to infidelityfacts.com, 31 percent of couples stay together after cheating is revealed or disclosed. That percentage should be zero.

Moreover, 74 percent of men and 68 percent of women surveyed said they would cheat if they knew they would never get caught. Those people shouldn’t be in relationships in the first place.

It’s heartbreaking and infuriating to think, despite knowing her husband was being unfaithful, Kennedy quietly stayed by his side. Some admired her for staying silent, arguing it kept her from victimizing herself to the public. But by staying, she did the ultimate injustice to herself. She sacrificed her self-worth, just like people in relationships have done and might be currently doing.

When couples stay together after acts of infidelity, it’s perplexing and unacceptable. Relationships are built on trust and when it’s broken, there’s no way it can ever be pieced back together.

Cheating is a selfish act and it’s pathetic when cheaters try to rationalize their wrongdoings.

“It was best for the relationship,” isn’t an excuse. “I wasn’t being satisfied,” isn’t an excuse. “It was only one time,” isn’t an excuse. “I blacked out,” isn’t an excuse. There are no excuses.

Cheaters sometimes claim they still love their partners after the fact. Well, if they really loved them, they wouldn’t have sought “satisfaction,” elsewhere. And for the people who stay in a relationship clouded by betrayal, ask yourself if knowing you’re the one he or she loves is enough for you to stay, or even worse, for you to share. Follow Maria Shriver’s lead and don’t cheat yourself.

— Kelly Hultgren is a journalism junior. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.