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Civil rights became a huge issue during the Kennedy administration because Kennedy showed great care and concern to the minorties during his election campaign. One of the major promise he made during the campaign was to pass a civil rights bill. However, he wasn’t able to fulfill that promise because of the strong opposition from the Southern States.
Kennedy was only able to advance the civil rights movement by pressuring the federal government to hire more African Americans and appoint them to senior posts. He also created the Commission on Equal Employment Opportunity. However, these were small actions and had very little impact on the overall Civil Rights Movement.
Another reason for the uprising of the civil rights movement was Martin Luther King, Jr. He became the leader of the minorities and made sure that Kennedy delivered on his promises through street protests and his speeches. When Kennedy was initially reluctant to pass the civil rights bill, it was due to the pressure King putted on him that he then presented it in Congress.
In conclusion, Kennedy made huge promises regarding civil rights during his election campaign. However, after getting elected, he failed to deliver on most of those promises. Being the President, he did help get African American minorities senior federal jobs in the government, and did various small actions to advance the civil rights movement. It can be argued that Kennedy was unable to deliver on his promise because he had to deal with other major issues like the Cuban Missile Crisis during his tenure.
Bibliography
Brody, David; Henretta, James A, “America Vol. 2 : A Concise History - Since 1865” The Liberal Consensus: Flaming Out, 1960–1968, edited by Henretta and Brody, 858-867, Leslie Quintanilla, 2009.
Brody, David; Henretta, James A, “America Vol. 2 : A Concise History - Since 1865” The Age of Cold War Liberalism, 1945–1980, edited by Henretta and Brody, 858-867, Leslie Quintanilla, 2009.
Brody, David; Henretta, James A, “America Vol. 2 : A Concise History - Since 1865”The Reagan Revolution and the End of the Cold War, 1980–2001, edited by Henretta and Brody, 888-900, Leslie Quintanilla, 2009.
