Civil Rights Act of 1964

This Act, forbade discrimination on the basis of sex as well as race in hiring, promotion and firing according to www.archives.gov

Interestingly, this bill also created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission which remains today. Acting on the powers it was given, this Commission processes claims by workers filing for suits against companies that are said to violate the laws on equality in the workplace. On average, the Commission processes over forty eight thousand claims annually.

The Act was called for by JFK in 1963, but political opposition led to a stalemate in Congress. Even though politicians weren't ready for change, a poll by Newsweek magazine in July 1963 showed that 72% of people polled wished to see neighborhood desegregation and integration and even more people at 75% wanted to see school integration. This was an increase in over 20% in the preceding two decades. In another poll, over 40% of African Americans who responded had recently taken part in a public demonstration. Yet, politicians refused to listen.

The political environment shortly after John F. Kennedy's assassination led to the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. While JFK was influential in the creation of the bill, Lyndon B. Johnson had the edge needed to pass it in Congress.

Lyndon B. Johnson used a few key tactics to pass this bill. He used not only his experience in addressing Congress and the public, but he also used the privilege of the "bully pulpit" as president. Yet, while these helped, he had one more ace up his sleeve, JFK. How? Well, as everyone was mourning the death of one of the nation's most charismatic leaders, Lyndon B. Johnson called upon this sadness to motivate the public. He said that they should honor JFK's memory and help pass the bill he himself worked so hard to pass.

Many of Lyndon's advisers strongly urged him not to push so strongly for the passing of the bill. They reasoned that if the bill was passed, he wouldn't stand a chance at reelection because he would lose the vote of many southern states. Undaunted, President Johnson pressed on and in the summer of 1964, he signed the bill into law.

Despite fears, Johnson was reelected in September of 1964. In fact, he won with a then widest popular margin of the 20th century. Johnson won with 61% of the vote which was more than 15 million votes! This was later surpassed by President Nixon's defeat of Senator McGovern in 1972. Johnson's popular vote margin of over 22 percentage points is a record that stands to this day according to Wikipedia

While the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended segregation and discrimination legally, there was a rough period of adjustment. This bill was followed up in 1968 with the Civil Rights Act of 1968 which further helped integration by clearly defining the right of equality of housing in the United States regardless of race,religion,age, sex, or nation origin.

Even after legislation, some remained in opposition to the Civil Rights movement. While today, the vast majority of people recognize and appreciate the freedoms they and others have. We must realize, radical change didn't come about overnight.