Civil Rights Act of 1964

The Civil Rights Act of 1957 had created a civil rights division in the Justice Department and a Civil Rights Commission. After the Birmingham campaign, President Kennedy went on national television on June 11, 1963, declaring that “this nation … will not be fully free until all its citizens are free,” and sent a comprehensive bill to Congress. The March on Washington that August demanded its passage. After Kennedy was killed in November 1963, Johnson made the bill his priority.

Opponents bottled it up in the House Rules Committee until supporters threatened to bring it to the floor without committee approval. In the Senate, Southern Democrats filibustered. Senator Hubert Humphrey managed the bill, and Minority Leader Everett Dirksen persuaded enough Republicans to support it over Southern Democratic opposition; the Senate passed it 73 to 27, to applause from the galleries.

The act outlawed segregation in businesses such as theaters, restaurants, and hotels, and in public places such as swimming pools and libraries; supported the desegregation of public schools; and barred discrimination in federally funded programs. Title VII banned discrimination in employment and created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which today enforces laws against job discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or age.