Voting Rights Act of 1965
This case examines the series of events that culminated in the passage
of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. There are five available sections to
the case. Part A traces the development of voting registration drives
in Selma, Alabama, and examines their role in furthering voting rights
legislation. It describes local involvement in the campaign, the
contribution by Martin Luther King and the Student Nonviolent
Coordinating Committee (SNCC), and growing media coverage of the
movement. The story concludes with the "Bloody Sunday" protest march
in Alabama, an event filmed by CBS and televised nationally that became
the prime catalyst in voting rights legislation. A supplement to this
case covers King's largely unsuccessful drive to organize slum dwellers
in Chicago in a protest against housing conditions and racism. Part B
follows the reaction of the Johnson administration to the events in
Selma, which culminated in the drafting of the Voting Rights Act. It
details the creation of the bill, including a discussion of the policy
options and alternatives considered. Finally, the authors outline
Johnson's strategy and his interaction with the public, Congress, and
the Justice Department. Part C follows the bill's passage through
Congress, laying out in detail the specifics of the legislative
process--what committee it went to, who was involved, what tactics were
employed. The sequel concludes the case with a discussion of the
impact of the Voting Rights Act on voter registration, and places the
case in the larger context of an evolving civil rights movement. The
summary case outlines the above story in a much abbreviated format.
The background note provides a brief historical account of major events
in the civil rights movement preceding the Selma campaign; a chronology
of events leading up to the signing of the Voting Rights Act is
available as well. In sum, this case shows how people outside the
government, relatively powerless compared to those they confront, can
become a potent political force. The rise of the voting rights
movement in Selma illustrates the qualities of a successful grassroots
movement, the power of shared beliefs, and the mechanisms of
interaction between a local group and national movements. The
supplement, on the other hand, suggests that there may be limits to the
capacity for social change in the United States. The case description
of CBS' coverage of "Bloody Sunday" may be used to analyze how the
media influence the national political agenda. Finally the details of
congressional and presidential reaction to media coverage and
constituent outcry indicate the importance of public opinion in
governmental decisionmaking.
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Background Note, 11pp+, (N14-75-112.0);
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Chronology, 3pp, (N14-77-112.8);
Voting Rights Act of 1965 (A): The Selma Campaign, 16pp+,
(C14-75-113.0);
Chicago Campaign, 1966: The Myth of King's National Constituency, 3pp,
(C14-77-113.4);
Voting Rights Act of 1965 (B): LBJ and the Department of Justice,
13pp+, (C14-75-114.0);
Voting Rights Act of 1965 (C): Congress and the Voting Rights Act10pp+,
(C14-75-115.0);
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Sequel, 19pp+, (C14-77-115.1);
Voting Rights Act of 1965: Summary Case, 24pp+, (C14-80-307.0)
