Discussion Assignment 4

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Lamar University *

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Political Science

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Oct 30, 2023

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Discussion Assignment 4 Even though the Civil War had officially abolished slavery with the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment, it did not end the discrimination and violence towards Black Americans. When Black Americans can no longer endure the devastating effects of racism, they mobilized together to start the civil rights movement. Through the efforts of civil right movement leaders and countless protesters, the federal government began to take action in ending discrimination by passing legislations. I will be discussing the legislative achievements of the civil rights movement. After Martin Luther King Jr. raised the civil rights movement’s profile with his “I have a Dream” speech during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, President John F. Kennedy began to set the foundation of a civil rights bill (The American Yawp). According to the Local Protest and Federal Policy document, Kennedy called on Congress “to enact legislation giving all Americans the right to be served in facilities which are open to the public.” He also sought improvement in the enforcement of school desegregation and voter protections (Local Protest and Federal Policy). As protests from Black Americans were escalating throughout the South, the Kennedy administration began to coordinate “voluntary” desegregation by collaborating with executives of national companies and other leaders (Local Protest and Federal Policy). Unfortunately, the civil rights bill was stalled in Congress because many white Southerners were against the bill (The American Yawp). After President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas on November 22, 1963, Vice President Lyndon Johnson took up the stalled civil rights bill (The American Yawp). According to the film The Civil Rights Movement, when Lyndon Johnson assumed the presidency in 1963, movements leaders feared that they would lose the gains achieved under President Kennedy. However, Johnson, who was a native Southerner,

embraced the cause of civil rights as a great domestic challenge and historic opportunity (The Civil Rights Movement). He encouraged his congressmen, persuaded the media, and enjoined the public to support the new civil rights legislation (Civil Rights Movement). According to President Johnson, the civil rights bill that he proposed to Congress is a “far-reaching step in the direction of equality” (The Civil Rights Movement). Within a year, Johnson achieved his goal of signing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law, which is considered to be the most crucial part of civil rights legislation in American history (The American Yawp). The act prohibits segregation in public places and banned discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender, and national or religious origin (The American Yawp). Another legislative achievement of the civil rights movement was the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. After peaceful voting rights protesters were attacked by white law enforcement with batons and tear gas in March 1925, President Johnson presented a bill that became the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (The American Yawp). The act prohibits discrimination in federal, state, and local elections (The American Yawp). Through the efforts of civil right movement leaders and countless protesters, the federal government passed many legislations including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. With President John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson supporting the civil rights movement’s goals of justice and morality, it marked the end of the segregation and discrimination that have been established by the Jim Crow laws. As people learn more about the civil rights movements, they will learn that the legislative achievements of the civil rights movement were not have been possible without the effort and sacrifice of many Americans.

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