Sixties Expert!…Who Me???
The 1960’s and
Civil Rights Legislation
By Marcy James
The Essential Question:
• To determine what role
bipartisanship played in
establishing Civil Rights
Legislation
Bipartisanship
This word means “two party”. If a bill has bipartisan
support, it means that both major political parties,
Republicans and Democrats support it.
Major Features of the Civil Rights Legislation of 1964
CongressLink
Link to CongressLink for
many resources
about the Civil Rights Legislation
of 1964.
H.R. 7152 passed February 10, 1964
420 members voted ~ 290 support 130 opposed
Republicans favored the bill 138 to 34
Democrats favored the bill 152 to 96
A bipartisan coalition of Republicans and northern
Democrats was key to the bill’s success
To pass the Senate, Republicans and Democrats would
have to work together once more
The Bill is Introduced in the Senate
To avoid the bill being delayed or pigeonholed,
the bill is placed directly on the Senate calendar
Senate floor debate began in March of 1964
Senator Hubert Humphrey led the pro-civil
rights Democrats
Senators Thomas Kuchel and Everett McKinley
Dirksen led the pro-civil rights Republicans
Senator Richard Russell led the opposition
Pro-Civil Rights Forces Take Action
Everett Dirksen and Lyndon
Johnson compare notes on the
legislative agenda in January
1964. Hubert Humphrey is
on the left; House Speaker
Carl Albert is on the right.
“Sharp opinions have developed. Incredible
allegations have been made. The mail volume
has been heavy. The bill has provoked many
long-distance phone calls, many of them late at
night or in the small hours of the morning…
thousands of people have come to the Capitol
to urge immediate action…Telegrams,
petitions, and letters all expressed the climate
of opinion that shaped the legislative struggle
and pressured Congress to act.”-Everett Dirksen
Everett Dirksen
The Dirksen Center
The Senate Debate
As the debate began it became clear that
opponents objected to two sections
of the bill:
The cut-off of federal funds to projects that
discriminated against African Americans
Fair employment practices enforcement *
Opposition Forces Filibuster
•A filibuster is a delaying tactic used in the
Senate to prevent a vote on a bill or a resolution.
As long as at least one Senator objects to cutting
off the debate, the rules state it may continue. In
this manner, a small group of Senators, or even a
single Senator, could delay the business of the
Senate with endless debate. During the long
filibuster of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the
Senate stayed in session around the clock.
Senators had to eat and sleep near the Senate
chamber.
Pro Civil Rights Legislation Groups
 AFL-CIO- Labor Unions
 The National Council of Churches
 National Catholic Conference for Interracial Justice
 National Jewish Community Relations Advisory
council
 National Student Christian Federation
 Americans for Democratic Action
 Women’s International League for Peace
and Freedom
 American Veteran’s Committee
Dirksen Strategies to Win
Swing Votes
Focused on a compromise to emphasize
state responsibility for civil rights
enforcement.
Focused on keeping federal government
intervention in local affairs at a minimum.
Proposed 10 amendments to modify the bill
assuring states primary jurisdiction over
complaints about discrimination during a
transition period before the federal
government entered the picture. - Dirksen Center
Filibuster Immobilized Senate
Filibuster continued into June
Two hour speeches most common
Dirksen remembered one 1500 page
speech
On May 13, Dirksen, Humphrey,
Mansfield, and Kuchel proposed a
compromise
The compromise made over 70 changes to H.R. 7152,
most of them concerning wording and punctuation.
The major change was to lessen the emphasis on
federal enforcement in cases involving fair employment
and public accommodations.
The compromise allowed for a period of voluntary
compliance before the U.S. Attorney General could act in
discrimination suits.- Dirksen Center
 The procedure used to cut off debate and end a filibuster is known as
cloture.
 16 Senators must file a petition to end the debate.
 Two days after the petition is filed, the Senate takes a vote to end the
debate by limiting each Senator to one hour.
 With the filibuster at an end, the bill would be brought before the Senate
for a vote
 On June 10, 1964, after an impassioned plea by Dirksen, the Senate
voted 71 to 29 to end the Civil Rights filibuster.
 Cloture ended 57 days of debate.
 44 Democrats and 27 Republicans supported cloture.
On June 19, 1964, the Senate voted by a 73
To 27 roll call vote. In all, the 1964 civil right
Debate had lasted a total of 83 days, and had
Taken up almost 3,000 pages in the
Congressional record.
The 1960’s and
Civil Rights Legislation
Sixties Expert!…Who Me???
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