Essay On Civil Rights Of 1964

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 resulted from one of the most controversial House and Senate debates in history. It was also the biggest piece of civil rights legislation ever passed. The bill actually evolved from previous civil rights bills in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. The bill passed through both houses finally on July 2, 1964 and was signed into law at 6:55 P.M. EST by President Lyndon Johnson. The act was originally drawn up in 1962 under President Kennedy before his assassination. The bill originated from two others, and one of which was the Equal Opportunity Act of 1962 that never went into law. This bill made up the core of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Bureau of National Affairs 18-20).

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." - - Martin Luther King, Jr.

African Americans have been struggling for equality for many decades. It only seems that during the 1960?s is when there were actual significant advances made. This was about the same time that civil rights came into the political scene. Throughout the South, Blacks were still in the majority, but had no political power what so ever. The Civil Rights Movement gave African Americans a voice and a chance to make a difference. The 1960's helped open up hope and expectations for Black Americans.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was significant to African Americans because the act ended segregation in public places and ended employment prejudice based on the pigment of skin, national origin, gender, ethnicity, or/and religion. The Act was one of the most momentous events to impact African Americans on the account of bringing equality to minorities on paper and giving them opportunities to voice their political and community concerns. However, there were unforeseen consequences that added to the suffering of the community which they expressed through riots and protest marches in efforts to ensure their new protections were enforced. The advancement of the Act helped the African American civil rights group in their awareness and voice in government, made tremendous strides in their group, and contributed to other minorities to gaining equality. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 affected African Americans both positively and negatively through federalism, minority rights, and judicial review.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is considered by some to be one of the most important laws in American history. (The Most Important Cases, Speeches, Laws & Documents in American History) This Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 2, 1964 and it is a “comprehensive federal statute aimed at reducing discrimination in public accommodations and employment situations.” (Feuerbach Twomey, 2010) Specifically, it aimed at prohibiting “discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy), and religion.” (Civil Rights Act of 1964, 2010) Additionally, it also

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination in employment on grounds of race, creed, religion, national origin, or sex. It withholds federal funds from discriminatory state and local programs. It authorizes the Department of Justice to initiate lawsuits to desegregate public facilities and schools and it outlawed arbitrary discrimination in voter registration and expedited voting rights lawsuits. It also barred discrimination in public accommodations engaged in interstate commerce.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the most important piece of legislation passed by Congress in the twentieth century. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was the first strong piece of civil rights legislation introduced to Congress since the American Civil War. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was signed and passed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on July 2nd 1964, after one of the longest running debates in Senate history. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was designed to end segregation and discrimination and to provide the minority population equal protection under the laws of and the Constitution of the United States. The question at hand is whether the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was necessary in order provide this protection.

Ultimately, the banishment of discrimination in public areas pushed the issue of desegregation over the edge. Eisenhower facilitated the movement of multiple acts and orders ensuring the rights of minorities across the country, determining that they cannot legally be discriminated against. Eisenhower, in his Civil Rights Act of 1964, stated, “An Act 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

In case study 4, we were asked to identify and research three different laws that has help us or our colleagues. Three different laws stood out to me as being an African American man and a Uniformed Service Member were Civil Rights Act 1964, Affirmative Action Plan and the Uniformed Service Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). Each one of these laws have tried to even the playing fields for African Americans and Service members. As you read through this case, I will go in to detail of each law and relate these laws to my life experiences

Due to the growing power if the civil rights movement, for example, Brown vs Board of Education and Rosa Parks, the Department of Justice was finally mandated to enforce federal hate crime laws when Congress passed and President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the first federal hate crime statute, the Civil Rights Act in July 2, 1964. The law expanded protection against all types of discrimination. It was finally a criminal offense if you used or threaten to use force to willfully interfere with any person because of race, color, religion, or national origin.4 The act prohibited racial discrimination in voting, employment, and education. It also outlawed racial segregation in all public places and most private businesses. President Johnson stated regarding the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that “Its purpose is not to divide but to end division. Divisions which have lasted all too long.”5

The 1960s were a time of upheaval and revolution, in this decade America took great leaps towards equality as activists throughout the country protested and demanded their basic American rights. One of these basic rights, one granted to many Americans by the 15th Amendment, a right which many African-Americans did not have. The “poll tax was revived” in southern states to “to prevent African-Americans” from “voting” (thefreedictionary.com). The right to vote is essential, and the poll tax prohibited the average man from voting, as most did not not have enough money to pay the tax. The 24th amendment was an essential event in the 1960s--setting a new benchmark for equality in America, one that included the African Americans.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 put a stop to public segregation and to the

Equal Employment Opportunity was fabricated in the historic Civil Rights of 1964. This Act was an omnibus bill addressing not only discrimination in service, but also discrimination in voting, public accommodations, and scholarship as well. The regulation was forged in an atmosphere of urgency. There was developing unrest in the country emanating from the powerful and appalling racial discrimination and segregation exposed during the civil rights protests in the 1960’s. Civil rights fought was played out in the streets of Birmingham, Alabama and other southern cities and because of television viewed by America. During the spring of 1963, the universe watched as demonstrators were beaten, attacked by police dogs, sprayed with high pressure water

Black Americans were discriminated against on a daily basis creating all sorts of difficulties in life, so the Civil Rights movements in the 1950s sparked optimism in many Black Americans.

The Civil Rights Movement of the 50's and 60's was arguably one of the most formative and influential periods in American history. Hundreds of thousands of civil rights activists utilized non violent resistance and civil disobedience to revolt against racial segregation and discrimination. The Civil Rights Movement began in the southern states but quickly rose to national prominence. It is of popular belief that the civil rights movement was organized by small groups of people, with notable leaders like—Martin Luther King, Jr, Rosa Parks, Medgar Evers, and even John F. Kennedy—driving the ship. That is partly correct. The Civil Rights Movement, in its truest form, was hundreds of thousands of people organizing events and protests,