When I think of the Civil Rights Act, I think of the one in 1964, but it was in 1957 that the first major civil rights bill was passed by Congress since the Reconstruction Era following the American Civil War.

The Civil Rights Act of 1957 went into effect 67 years ago today on September 9, 1957.

What it did, in a nutshell

It made it a federal crime to try to prevent someone from voting.

It created the Civil Rights Commission in the Executive Branch of the U.S. Government.

It created the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice.

What led up to this Act

In 1954, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education that racial segregation was illegal in public schools. Change was slow to come.

Nine black students volunteered to desegregate the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. They were met with the National Guard, which had been called out by Governor Orval Faubus, and an angry mob. Two weeks later the nine students, who became known as the Little Rock Nine, tried again to gain entrance to the school. They were able to enter the school but had to be removed for their safety.

U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower ordered federal troop to escort the nine students to and from class at the school. The publicity of the troubles at Little Rock helped bring the issue of racial desegregation and voting rights to a head.

President Eisenhower pressured Congress to enact civil rights legislation. The result was the Civil Rights Act of 1957.

The wheels of justice turn slowly

We all know that deep-rooted cultural and racial prejudices are slow to change. It would be the late 1960s before true racial desegregation would be accomplished across the United States. For example, the county in which I live in North Carolina instituted voluntary school desegregation in 1965. The following school year, it was mandatory.

And it was, no doubt, that long before all black citizens felt safe to go their polling places to cast their ballots. I can’t help but think some of them do not yet feel completely safe.

And in 2024, a presidential election year, there are still threats – spoken and unspoken — and insidious state laws making it more difficult for citizens to vote when we should be making it easier. The false accusations of voter fraud have resulted in many state legislatures enacting numerous new restrictions to allegedly fix a problem that does not exist.

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Until my next blog post

I hope you’re reading a good book!

Make time for friends and family.

Don’t forget the people of Ukraine.

Janet