In the Declaration of Independence (1776) sent to King George III, Thomas Jefferson wrote that governments derive their power from the “Consent of the Governed,” the people. Even after the colonies became the United States of America following the Revolutionary War, the act of voting that had been raised in colonial times was not formally enacted.

The U.S. Constitution of 1787 did not address voting rights directly. The following amendments were adopted, eventually, to attempt to remedy this shortcoming. The 15^th Amendment (1870) sought to give the vote, regardless of race, color, or slave status. The 19^th Amendment (1920, just 100 years ago) gave women the right to vote. The 24^th Amendment (1964) made it illegal to require poll taxes, a tactic often used in the South to deter Blacks from voting. The 26^th Amendment (1971) gave voting rights to all American citizens 18 years of age or older.

Still, not all Americans were being allowed to vote through restrictive practices, especially in the South. President Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) addressed the United States Congress in 1965 to urge the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and they did.

Yet today, however, there are issues with access to voting in October 2020 with the presidential election to be held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Early voting began this week in a number of states. More than 55 years after President Johnson’s historic speech, the country finds itself still struggling with many of the same voting and human rights issues that he was fighting to rectify in 1965 (as well as before).

Writing/Discussion Prompt

Read the attached address by President Johnson and write a discussion post (400 word minimum) that responds to his speech:

• Why do you think he stated in paragraph 7 that ”There is no Negro problem. There is no southern problem. There is no northern problem. There is only an American problem.”
• Discuss what you consider to be some of the main points of his address.
• Are we still facing some of the issues that he noted in his speech? If so, discuss at least one of them in some detail.

Be sure to include relevant short quotes to support your discussion and analysis.

Notes on Writing

• Critical Thinking. I am not looking for a sermon on voting and prejudice. I am looking for critical thinking that in your discussion analyzes issues and makes logical generalizations and arguments. We don’t have to agree, but we all must make sense.
• Historical Events. President Johnson mentioned several historical places and events in his address. If you are not familiar with them, look them up. He referred to them for a reason.
• Negro. Please do not discuss the word “Negro.” Throughout American history, various terms have been used to refer to Americans of African ancestry: colored, Negro, African American, and Black. This is not the point of this assignment. This is about the right to vote.
• Titles. Please give your paper a title that reflects the contents. Do not give the topic as a title. Do not title your paper LBJ and Voting Rights, or Voting Rights, or The Voting Rights Act of 1965. Be imaginative.
• Title Format. Please capitalize all the major words in your title. Your title should be the same font face and font size as the text of your paper. Do not bold your title, underline, or put it in quotation marks.
• Proofread/Edit. Please write your paper in a timely manner so you have sufficient time to proofread and edit. In other words, don’t wait until Tuesday to write your draft. Grammar – sentence structure, punctuation, spelling, word choice, and verb tense consistency – counts.

Lesson and Assignment 5 President Johnson speech transcript.docx (22.618 KB)