The Civil Rights Act 1964

1. The Civil Rights Act 1964 How we got here

2. How it began • 19th century slavery. • Abraham Lincoln abolishes slavery and gives blacks equal rights, but…… • “Jim Crow laws”. • Denied voting rights, did not have equal status legally or socially.

3. Time to do something about this. • Brown vs Board of Education 1954. • Protest segregation through the courts, success. • Rosa Parks and the Montgomery bus boycott 1955. • Non violent protest, success. Emergence of MLK. • Little Rock, Arkansas 1957. • Further attempts to desegregate schools. • Sit Ins and Freedom Rides 1960-61. • Continuation of non violent strategies, some success. • James Meredith and ‘Ole Miss’ 1962. • Another successful court protest.

4. Everybody has an opinion, make it count. • Birmingham campaign 1963 • National attention, public outrage, Presidential outrage. • March on Washington 1963. • Mass national attention to present a list of needs of America’s blacks to support the Civil Rights Bill.

5. Timeline • 1963 – Civil Rights Bill (CRB) introduced • February 1964 – CRB passed the House of Representatives. • June 1964 – CRB passed the Senate. • Southern Democrats begin using filibuster tactics to delay its passing. SCLC protests this and are met by violent opposition from KKK. Like Birmingham, media coverage influenced public and political opinion. • 2 July – CRB signed into law by President Johnson.

6. Civil Rights Act 1964 • Outlawed racial discrimination in employment, public places, and accommodation. • Made it possible for the Attorney-General to act to desegregate education and protect voting rights. • Did not guarantee Black people the right to vote in local and state elections.