July 1964

President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, banning discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in employment and public accommodations. Title VII created the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The Act passed the Senate 73-27 after the defeat of the Southern filibuster.

During and after Freedom Summer 1964, the KKK burned 37 Black churches used for voter registration. Mt. Zion Methodist Church in Neshoba County was burned June 16, 1964, the event that brought Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner to investigate before their murder.

During and after Freedom Summer 1964, the Ku Klux Klan burned 37 Black churches in Mississippi that had been used for voter registration meetings or civil rights organizing. Mt. Zion Methodist Church in Neshoba County was burned June 16, 1964 — the event that brought Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner to investigate before they were murdered.

Despite Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the EEOC had no enforcement power and could only investigate and attempt conciliation. Black unemployment remained twice the white rate. Northern AFL-CIO construction unions actively excluded Black workers from apprenticeship programs.

Despite Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibiting employment discrimination, the EEOC was underfunded and had no enforcement power — it could only investigate and attempt conciliation. Black unemployment remained twice the white rate throughout the decade. AFL-CIO construction unions in Northern cities actively excluded Black workers from apprenticeship programs through racially restrictive practices.

Off-duty NYPD Lieutenant Thomas Gilligan shot and killed 15-year-old James Powell in Harlem. Six nights of uprisings followed across Harlem and Bedford-Stuyvesant, resulting in 1 death, 144 injuries, and 519 arrests. A grand jury cleared Gilligan. The event marked the beginning of a pattern of urban rebellions across the decade.

Off-duty NYPD Lieutenant Thomas Gilligan shot and killed 15-year-old James Powell in Harlem. Six nights of unrest followed in Harlem and Bedford-Stuyvesant: 1 death, 144 injuries, 519 arrests. A grand jury cleared Gilligan. The event began a pattern of urban rebellions across the decade.

Landmark law outlawing segregation and employment discrimination.