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To What Extent Did Lyndon B Johnson Support The Civil Rights Movement

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When people think about the Civil Rights Movement, they think of the biggest influential speakers like Martin L. King Jr. The Civil Rights Movement was the century-long fight to get legal rights for African Americans. In 1964 the Civil Rights Act was finally signed by Lyndon B. Johnson. Johnson had previously been the senator for Texas before becoming John F. Kennedy’s running mate and vice president. While he was president he strongly supported the Civil Rights Movement, but as the Texas senator, he did everything possible to make sure that the state governments handled civil rights issues. His sudden change of view surprised many people and led people to believe that he was only supporting the Civil Rights Movement for the political benefit, …show more content…

In the beginning part of the speech, “The American Promise,” he says that Americans will fail as a nation if African-Americans can not have equal rights. He also quotes the Declaration of Independence by bringing up that America was founded on the purpose of “all men are created equal.” He says that that promise is something that every man should be able to share, no matter their position, skin color, or wealth. This part of the speech really shows that Johnson understands that discrimination that is holding certain people back and that it is not equal. Lyndon B. Johnson’s personal experience was one of the reasons that he supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Before Johnson became a president, was a teacher in Cotulla, Texas in a segregated Mexican-American school. He describes how he could see the pain that the Mexican children experienced. He states “They never seemed to know why people disliked them. But they knew it was so because I saw it in their eyes” (“The American Promise” Johnson). Johnson’s description of his experience shows the sympathy that he showed towards the children who were experiencing discrimination and …show more content…

While Johnson was the senator from Texas, he tried did everything possible to stop federal civil rights laws. He only supported one law on voting rights but the law had no effect because it had been so weakened. Johnson seemed to not support the civil rights because he was just representing what the people from Texas wanted. When Johnson was asked why it took so long for him to act on a situation he felt strongly about, Johnson replied by saying that he was free at last and thanking God for finally being free. This shows that Johnson felt trapped as the senator from Texas, meaning he was not afraid to lose the support of Texas or of the South

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