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Activity 11, The Civil Rights Movement, continued
Document 7
Date
I speak tonight for the dignity of man and the destiny of Democracy. I urge
every member of both parties, Americans of all religions and of all colors,
from every section of this country, to join me in that cause.
At times, history and fate meet at a single time in a single place to shape
a turning point in man's unending search for freedom. So it was at
Lexington and Concord. So it was a century ago at Appomattox. So it was
last week in Selma, Alabama. There, long suffering men and women peace-
fully protested the denial of their rights as Americans. Many of them were
brutally assaulted. One good man-a man of God-was killed....
Many of the issues of civil rights are very complex and most difficult.
But about this there can and should be no argument: every American citizen
must have an equal right to vote. There is no reason which can excuse the
denial of that right. There is no duty which weighs more heavily on us than
the duty we have to insure that right. Yet the harsh fact is that in many
places in this country men and women are kept from voting simply because
they are Negroes....
We have all sworn an oath before God to support and to defend that
Constitution. We must now act in obedience to that oath. Wednesday, I will
send to Congress a law designed to eliminate illegal barriers to the right to
vote....
But even if we pass this bill the battle will not be over. What happened
in Selma is part of a far larger movement which reaches into every section
and state of America. It is the effort of American Negroes to secure for
themselves the full blessings of American life. Their cause must be our cause
too. Because it's not just Negroes, but really it's all of us, who must over-
come the crippling legacy of bigotry and injustice.
And we shall overcome.
-President Lyndon B. Johnson, announcing his proposal
for a voting rights act (March 15, 1965)
7a. What was the significance of President Johnson's use of the phrase "we shall over-
come" in his address?
overcome
7b. According to Johnson, why must government officials support the right of African
Americans to vote?
Copyright by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. All rights reserved.
American History
97
Document-Based Activities
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