The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was (in many well-credited opinions) one of the most extreme controversies in American history. Besides from being an important step to equality, it was also a glimmering beacon of hope for all of those who fell victim to discrimination. The bill was passed on July 2, 1964 and was signed into law by President Johnson. The Civil Rights Act was first written in 1962 before President Kennedy's assassination.

The rights being guaranteed by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 were the desegregation of all public places (including public schools), an employer may not deny a person employment because of their race, gender, or religion. One cannot be denied federal funding solely on the judgment of their race, gender, or religion. Americans have the right to vote without racial discrimination. The applications given to voter must be the same type given to all voters of all colors.

These rights were mainly written to protect minorities from unfair treatment however, before this became law women had been being treated as a less valuable employee in terms of their paycheck. For example, before this bill was passed a woman and a man could have worked at the same place, doing the same amount of work and the woman probably would have received less money for her efforts.

Overall, Americans that experienced any kind of discrimination benefited from this law. This is not to say that people were stripped of their opinions and brainwashed by the government that every man and woman was created equal. People still had their opinions but the Civil Right Act of 1964 made it illegal to segregate or deny any one specific group of people for their differences.

Because all Americans that could fill out a voting application had the right to vote politicians running for any position in office were effected. The political views of minorities were being released from their shell of silence and breaking the barriers of those in office. Some people took action and went as far as shooting colored people that planned to vote. Fortunately, their voices were not so easily smothered beneath a pillow of intimidation. Colored people continued to practice their right to vote no matter the consequence, for they knew that the moment they give up, they give in.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 altered the current state of America's “normal culture”. As black children were allowed share the same school as white kids, colored children received the same education. Their mind were nurtured with each word they wrote and each test they took. Blacks were beginning to be accepted to major colleges and went on to be professionals in their field. Blacks could live in the same neighborhoods and apartment buildings as whites so children were immersed in different cultures and lifestyles.

America was transforming into one of the most culturally diverse countries in the world. Not only were minorities spun around but different religions were introduced. People that had once kept their religion a secret out of fear were now advertising it. They went door to door in search of someone to listen to the every detail of their religion and convert. Lines were crossed as satanists shouted their beliefs in front of churches. Some made attempts to retaliate through the means of constant badgering to convert while other simply sat by and watched everything unfold.


The movie The Express was staged in the time before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed. It is about a colored boy (Ernie Davis) that plays football for Syracuse University and faces a series of racially discriminatory boundaries on his way to football fame. After arriving in Texas with the rest of his team, Mr. Davis is told that he and two other black players on his team must sleep in the basement of the hotel that his team is staying at. They are not allowed to use the elevator because the hotel manager is worried that they will frighten his white clientele. This is a perfect example of a situation that the Civil Rights Act of 1964 would have made illegal if the situation had been in the time after the law was passed. But because it was in the time before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it was completely legal.

In The Express, blacks that had come to support Mr. Davis in the cotton bowl sat in section that was apart from the whites. This indicates that the seating arrangement of the cotton bowl is segregated.
They had probably paid the same amount of money or perhaps even more for those seats than the whites had. If the Civil Rights Act of 1964 had been passed before his event then the blacks could have bought tickets for any seat in the stadium, if they had the money.