JFK’s Civil Rights Speech: June 11, 1963

50 years ago last month, President Kennedy spoke boldly and eloquently from the Oval office in response to the National Guard being sent to protect African-American students at the University of Alabama. Kennedy’s words ~

“We are confronted primarily with a moral issue.
It is as old as the scriptures and as clear as the American Constitution.”

• Kennedy would only live another 5 months and 11 days
• 13 months later President Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law.
• 13 months after that Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law.
• 48 years later (ie 3 weeks ago) the US Supreme Court “gutted” the Voting Rights Act by striking down…

“…Section 4(b), which set out the formula for determining which states are subject to the Section 5 preclearance requirement,
thus rendering Section 5 — which many consider the heart of the act — meaningless.”   ~
Bill Moyers Group Think

Watch this short excerpt of Kennedy’s Civil Rights speech for more motivation to turn outrage into action:

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