Legislative Changes: Civil Rights Act (1964)
Landmark Legislation
- The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a landmark law tackling racial and gender discrimination in voting, public facilities, education, employment, and federally funded programs.
- Grounded in the 14th and 15th Amendments and the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution.
- Journalist Clay Risen called it the “Bill of the Century” in his 2014 book, recognizing its impact on democracy and equality.
- The Act responded to a decade of activism, including the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Freedom Rides, sit-ins, and Birmingham demonstrations.
- Media coverage of violent repression, such as police brutality in Birmingham (1963), helped shift public opinion and political will.
Political Leadership
- John F. Kennedy was initially slow to act but, pressured by events like the murder of Medgar Evers and the Birmingham church bombing, proposed the bill in June 1963.
- After Kennedy’s assassination, Lyndon B. Johnson used his political skill to push the bill through Congress, despite his earlier opposition to civil rights.
Historiography
In the passing of the Civil Rights Act, we can identify three main protagonists (black activism, the media and the politicians) that also represent three historiographical perspectives. Which one is the strongest?
- The first perspective argues that grassroots activism and direct action by African Americans and civil rights organizations created the indispensable pressure that forced political change. The decade of protests, including bus boycotts, sit-ins, Freedom Rides, and marches, mobilized public opinion and made civil rights impossible to ignore, ultimately compelling Congress to act.
- The second viewpoint stresses how televised images of violence against civil rights protesters, such as police brutality in Birmingham and the 1963 church bombing, galvanized national outrage and increased public support for civil rights legislation. In this sense, media coverage is seen as a catalyst that forced politicians to respond to the growing crisis, making it politically untenable to ignore civil rights abuses.
- A third interpretation highlights the importance of political leadership, legislative strategy, and presidential influence, especially by John F. Kennedy and later Lyndon B. Johnson, in navigating the bill through Congress.This view credits the institutional power and negotiation of key politicians for overcoming congressional opposition and enacting the legislation.
Opposition and Debate
- The bill faced fierce opposition, including a three-month Senate filibuster by Southern Democrats.It was rewritten several times before passing.
- An amendment unexpectedly added “sex” as a protected employment category. Some viewed this as sabotage, but it stayed in the final law.
Note
- A filibuster is a political tactic used in the U.S. Senate where senators extend debate indefinitely to delay or block a vote on a bill.
- It often involves long speeches or procedural moves until supporters withdraw or a supermajority ends the debate.
- Southern Democrats used prolonged debate and procedural delays for three months, aiming to prevent the bill’s passage and maintain segregation and racial discrimination in the South.
Note
- When the bill was being debated, Senator Howard Smith from Virginia unexpectedly added the word “sex” to the section banning employment discrimination.
- Many lawmakers thought he did this as a “wrecking amendment”, meaning, he hoped that by including gender, the bill would lose support and fail, since some legislators opposed women's rights or thought it made the bill more complicated.
- Opponents feared that adding “sex” would make the bill politically harder to pass, as it expanded protections beyond race and introduced debates about gender equality. However, despite these concerns, the amendment remained in the final law.
- This addition was actually historic, as it was the first time gender discrimination in employment was explicitly outlawed, paving the way for later women's rights advances.
Provisions and Enforcement
- Titles II and III desegregated public accommodations and state-run facilities, using federal power over interstate commerce.
- Non-compliant states and institutions risked losing federal funding.
- The Act empowered the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, creating stronger enforcement mechanisms.
- Resistance persisted, but over time Jim Crow laws began to be dismantled, especially in schools and public spaces.
Common Mistake
- Do not assume that legal changes immediately ended segregation and discrimination.
- In reality, many schools, businesses, and communities resisted integration, and social, economic, and cultural barriers persisted for years.
- Legal enforcement was often slow, uneven and legal pools made it more difficult to guarantee rights.
Political Consequences
- The Act caused a major shift in U.S. politics. Many Southern Democrats abandoned the party.
- By the late 1960s, Republicans used the “Southern Strategy” to win support in the South, with figures like Richard Nixon and George Wallace leading this realignment.
- Cultural issues, including opposition to school desegregation and social change, also fueled the Southern realignment. Wallace’s 1968 presidential campaign capitalized on segregationist sentiment, winning five Southern states.
- Republicans increasingly used coded “dog whistles” to appeal to white racial anxieties without explicit racism.
- This shift drove the rise of conservatism in the South, shaping elections for decades.
- Meanwhile, African American voters increasingly supported the Democratic Party, deepening the racial and ideological divide.
