Thank you for the info. I did not know that. I am a JFK fan but thought, erroneously it seems, he went easy on civil rights for fear of offending Southern allies.

My favorite JFK quotation, even ahead of "Ask not...." and "Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a jelly donut) was in a little noted speech in October 1963. "We all share this small planet. We all breathe the same air. We all cherish our children's futures. And we are all mortal."


>Civil Rights Act of 1964
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>Long title: To enforce the constitutional right to vote, to confer jurisdiction upon the district courts of the United States to provide injunctive relief against discrimination in public accommodations, to authorize the Attorney General to institute suits to protect constitutional rights in public facilities and public education, to extend the Commission on Civil Rights, to prevent discrimination in federally assisted programs, to establish a Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity, and for other purposes.
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>Where did the Civil Rights act of 1964 come from?
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>The bill was promised by President JFK in his civil rights speech of June 11, 1963, in which he asked for legislation that would provide "the kind of equality of treatment which we would want for ourselves." JFK sent the bill to Congress on June 19, 1963. The bill mimicked the Civil Rights Act of 1875, which included provisions to ban discrimination in public accomodations, and to enable the U.S. Attorney General to sue state governments which operated segreated school systems, among other provisions.
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>The House of Representatives received the bill and it was tied up in committee and refered to Howard Smith of the Rules Committee, Novermber 1963. The bill needed 50 votes to pass the House of Representatives, and did pass on February 10, 1964, and was then sent to the Senate.
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>The bill passed the Senate and was signed into law on July 2, 1964.
>To say that JFK did nothing is not true. At least he saw the importance of the Civil Rights Act and introduced it as a bill, before he was killed.
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>It was not until later in the career of JFK that he attempted to do something positive for civil rights. There was great reluctance especially in the south, to allow civil rights when Jim Crow worked so well (for some) as a social custom. As Johnson said when he signed the bill, “We have lost the south for a generation”!
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>One interesting topic (to me) is why did we needed a Voting Rights Act in 1965? Add to that the poll tax. I was in Air Force Security Service at Goodfellow Air Force Base, San Angelo, Texas. I recall well the trips by LBJ and the local television news concerning Texas not accepting voting laws of the United States. By the way, the people around San Angelo (and Johnson City) hated LBJ with a passion!
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>The 24th Amendment outlawed the Poll Tax in 1964 but it was still in use in Texas in 1965, and 1966 (I left in June for reassignment to ADC) when I was there.
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>>I went off-thread on this topic for a while but I agree with Mike's point entirelyi, LBJ was a terrible president overall but was a genuine and aggresive proponent of civil rights. Plus, being a southern Democrat, he could cajol and shame his fellow southerers into following his lead.
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>>I do mildly disagree with you, though, about JSK. He didn't do little, he did nothing. He was by far a political animal and didn't take too many divisive positions on any issue.
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>>Contrast JSk with those who came before and those who came after: Truman, Eisenhower, and Johnson - all of whom have excellent records in civil rights.
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>>>>>>Not quite true. Liberals were staunch supporters of segregation well into the 1960's as a means of "protecting" minorities - it was the Eisenhower, for instance, who demanded the integration of the US armed forces and he was no liberal.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Historically, the two most ardent champions for minorities were definitely not liberal: Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt. The two most liberal presidents, Wilson and Soosevelt were either outspoken or tacit supporters of segregation.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>As to women's rights, I'll grant you that one as Wilson was the one who supported the 19th amendement, after being shamed by a group called the
>>>>>>Silent Sentinels.
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>You seem to be confusing political party affiliation with liberal vs. conservative. No question that in Lincoln's time (and probably in TR's), the Republicans were the more liberal party. But there's never been an exact correlation.
>>>>>
>>>>>Tamar
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>>>>I can't find John's message (this thread started last SEPTEMBER! (lol)) so am replying to him here. LBJ's name should be added to that list. That's not a matter of party affiliation, just a matter of credit where credit is due. He was in many ways a crummy President but he did more for civil rights than anyone else. Way more than JFK, who talked the talk but didn't walk the walk.
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>>>>In doing so he crippled the Democratic Party in the south. You (Tamar) are only a year younger than me so are old enough to remember when it was called "the solid south," meaning solidly Democratic. That arrangement was based on a don't-ask-don't-tell acceptance of racism. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the peace marches led by Martin Luther King and others blew that all to hell.
>>>>
>>>>If you want to read a great biography pick up any of the three volumes of Taylor Branch's magisterial bio of MLK. I gave away the first volume but remember a couple of passages in particular. One described a speech he gave as a young minister in Atlanta, describing "an iron boot heel of oppression." It said the audience erupted in waves of applause. "He was 27 years old and would live the rest of his life in the public eye. He had not quite 12 years to live." The other was at the very end. "Race was the issue that would lift him up among world leaders and lower him down to die among garbage workers in Memphis. To keep going, he became a pillar of fire."
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>>>JFK did a bit to help civil rights but he died too soon. Whever LBJ as President wanted to get congress to vote for civil rights bills he would say, "President Kennedy would have wanted this"! The advantage LBJ had was that he knew how to work with congress.
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>>>http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/john_kennedy_and_civil_rights.htm