But then, my fellow NQ writer/friend, LisaB, alerted me to a story I missed in my own home town paper while I was out of town, which she found at Michell Malkin’s site. Now, you may recall that I have no love lost for this man who repeatedly stabbed the Clintons in the back before our primary last year, painting them as racists for stating actual facts (like that it takes a president to sign a bill into law – one would THINK a US Representative would be aware of that, but apparently, Rep. Clyburn does not know that). So, I was not at all surprised that he claimed in a recent Post and Courier article that Michelle Obama won’t come to SC because we’re all a bunch of racists and too hostile. Oh, how I wish I was making this up:

U.S. House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn said Friday that a conversation with White House staff left him with the sense that a hostile environment in South Carolina is keeping the first lady from visiting.

The high-ranking South Carolina Democrat said he has received more than 100 invitations for Michelle Obama. But this summer when he brought one of those requests to her staff on behalf of his alma mater, South Carolina State University, Clyburn said her security was an issue.

The conversation came after former Richland County GOP activist Rusty DePass suggested on Facebook in June that an escaped zoo gorilla was not harmful because it was probably one of Mrs. Obama’s ancestors. DePass’ comment was coupled with a remark in July from U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint, a Republican. DeMint said that beating the president’s health care plan would be a ‘Waterloo’ moment for Obama.

Congressman Joe Wilson’s ‘You lie!’ outburst during Obama’s joint address on health care reform last month didn’t help either, Clyburn said.

‘A lot of it has to do with the fact that the climate in South Carolina just is not good, and that’s a shame,’ Clyburn said at a roundtable discussion at his Columbia office.

‘I do believe it is keeping her away from this state,’ he said.

The congressman said the first lady’s family connections in South Carolina and her fond childhood memories from Georgetown County left many excited at the possibility that the Obamas would vacation on the coast here. Her security must be guaranteed before that could happen, Clyburn said.

DePass said Clyburn’s comments were off base.

‘The idea that people in South Carolina are hostile to the Obamas is poppycock,’ he said. ‘That’s utterly ridiculous.’

I concur. Just more race baiting from Rep. Clyburn. Oh, I am so proud that he speaks for me – NOT. But there’s more:

DePass apologized before the South Carolina Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for his Facebook comment, and reiterated that apology

Friday. He also said that his history with the Republican Party included reaching out to minority voters and trying to remove the Confederate battle flag from the Statehouse dome.

Wilson’s office also said Clyburn was wrong.

‘Congressman Wilson respectfully disagrees with Congressman Clyburn’s assumption,’ Wilson spokesman Ryan Murphy said in a statement. ‘He believes the people of South Carolina would welcome the president and the first lady should they decide to visit our great state.’

Neither the first lady’s press office nor the Secret Service provided comment for this story. DeMint’s office also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Pat Caddell of Hanahan, an expert on public opinion polls and a Democratic strategist, said South Carolina surely has racists among its residents, but racism isn’t the prevailing sentiment. ‘The Democratic Party will blow itself up if it keeps assigning things as racist,’ Caddell said. (Reach Yvonne Wenger at 803-926-7855 or ywenger@postandcourier.com.)

Sigh. I have to tell you, I am pretty damn sick and tired of being called a racist because I live in South Carolina for starters, but for any, ANY, questioning of President Obama’s policies (or lack thereof). For Rep. Clyburn to claim that the First Lady isn’t coming here, even though she has FAMILY here, because it’s “hostile” just makes me, well, “hostile!”

I had to read some of the comments at the end of the article to see what some of my fellow Palmetto State residents had to say. Three in particular caught my attention. The first is obviously in response to another comment:

treasured wrote:

regulardude…Please give us a break!

Was Obama’s negative remarks about the US to other countries patriotic?You get respect when respect is earned.

Just because he is the President does not mean that we have to agree with him and like you, we can voice our opinions and our concerns.

There have been many concerns about this President and they have not just been from SC.You are just reading articles from a SC paper.What is the difference in your remarks accusing us of not respecting the President and you obviously not respecting your own state that you insist on living in?Must be something you like about it.

I have grown children and I have a young child. As it stands right now, they and their children will have to pay back for many years all the money that Obama has dished out in his so called stimulus plans.

Now, if you want to sing his praises, well and good, but don’t call the rest of us unpatriotic if we don’t agree with what he is doing.That is our right as Americans.

And this one:

caberchucker wrote:
Yeah, that makes sense that she’s “scared” of the hostility in SC. Oh wait, didn’t the Obamas and Oprah have to move their rally to USC’s stadium while campaigning, so they could accomidate all the people? Nevermind, I guess that never actually happened.

Uh yeah, evidently not.

And finally, this one, which I think really hits at the core of this charge by Rep. Clyburn:

wonderdog wrote:
Clyburn is embarrassed because he got snubbed by the Obamas, so he made up this nonsense to make it appear that it’s somebody’s fault. If he can get enough people to buy into that BS, maybe he can convince himself, too.

Now that the Obamas have no more use to them after he played his role as patsy during the campaign, why should they deign to do anything that might help him in some way? But yes, so much easier – for Rep. Clyburn, that is – to blame it on the very people who sent him to D.C. Nice, really nice. Can’t wait to see what he calls us next!

Are extremists infiltrating our own military to the point of inadvertently training terrorists who will attack us in the future? It turns out that at least 40 persons who list their occupation as “military” are profiled on the Internet forum New Saxon, a Facebook-like site operated by the neo-Nazi National Socialist Movement.

Is this a real problem? Or is it just another conspiracy theory, the kind that boils all-too-freely in a country now ruled by fear?

The Southern Poverty Law Center is not known for being on the batshit fringe. Quite the contrary. Helping to implement the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as well as making courtroom challenges that resulted in equal benefits for women in the military, ending involuntary sterilization of women on welfare, reform of prison conditions, are among the organzation’s many victories. The first civil suit against a major Klu Klux Klan was brought by the SPLC, and it has been riding the Klan’s ass ever since.

But hate crimes go on, and the SPLC continues its mission to protect America from its own destructive elements. Its concern about white supremacists infiltrating the military is not new. While reaffirming that the overwhelming majority of men and women in uniform reject extremism and are dedicated to our country’s ideals, based on new evidence the SPLC is engaging in a new push to investigate. A letter to those of us on the SPLC email list reads, in part:

We’ve been warning the Pentagon about the danger of extremists in the military for more than two decades. In 2008, the FBI issued a report indicating that the problem may have worsened. Unfortunately, the Pentagon has not taken forceful action.

Indeed, the Pentagon appears to consider homosexuals more of a threat to the good order of the military than neo-Nazis who reject our Constitution’s most cherished principles. While the military has discharged more than 12,500 service members because of their alleged homosexuality since 1994, it has refused to adopt a true “zero tolerance” policy when it comes to extremists in the military.

A more detailed letter was sent to the chairs of the House and Senate committees on Homeland Security and Armed Services, copied to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and Under Secretary of Defense David S.C. Chu. See it here.

Yet, what damage could realistically be done by a few dozen hate-filled members of the armed services? The potential could be two-fold: (1) these individuals are learning warfare skills, and (2) they are in a position to recruit new haters. And lest we not forget Sergeant Timothy McVeigh, a name that still sends chills up our collective spine. (If you have not yet visited the memorial on the bombing site in Oklahoma City I dare you to hold it together when you see those 19 “little chairs” representing the murdered children). It takes only a few, as we also recall from the Twin Tower terrorists who learned to fly on our soil.

So, are you worried about this?

The contributions that women have made to the history of this nation are rarely acknowledged. Most of the children in the country grow up not knowing that women were at the forefront of the anti-slavery, civil right, social reform, suffrage, and gay rights movements. They stood up for others, but few have stood up for them.

The first women’s movement began around 1848 at Seneca Falls, New York, when Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott and others formed organizations to fight for votes for women. The movement came to fruition in 1919 when the 19th Amendment became part of the Constitution.

The second women’s movement began in the late 1960’s and 70’s with women’s liberation. Its focus was to attain equal rights and equal pay for women, and should have come to fruition in the early 1980’s with the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, but unfortunately, it did not occur.

In my opinion, despite some setback in recent years, I believe that we are now in the third women’s movement. It began in 1985 with the establishment of Emily’s List. This organization gave women the financial resources needed to win seats in Congress. As a result, we have been able to make changes within government, rather than working from the outside as it was done during the first movement. This third movement took hold in the 1992 election, and I feel it has been gaining ground ever since. The culmination of the movement has not come yet, but its progression has led us to where we are now with a woman candidate for President of the United States. We have the power to achieve the ultimate victory for our sister before us who worked so hard to get us to this place, and for future generations of women, who I hope with the help of this women’s history time line will have a better understanding or how far we have come…..and how far we have left to go.

As you examine this time line, please consider the following:
1) women have always put others before themselves
2) women have been instrumental in solving the important social issues of this country
3) women are powerful and can do anything, and get the job done

I see these qualities in Hillary Clinton, and electing her at this moment in American History is the right thing to do.

Who am I, you may wonder? I am a 59 year old feminist and a 2002 graduate of UCLA with degrees in Women’s Studies and History, and I am the 2002 recipient of the Constance Coiner Undergraduate Prize. My sole purpose in compiling this time line is to ensure that people know the contributions that women have made to our nation’s history. I hope that you will share this information with those you feel will benefit the most from knowing more about the contributions of American women.

Thank you,

kirbruin@yahoo.com

TIMELINE

1692
Salem (Mass) Witch Trials – 20 women and girls were executed for being witches and using witchcraft.

1740
17 year old Eliza Pinckney manages her father’s plantation in the Carolinas when her father is called back to his post. She was one of many women who took over the responsibility of managing the family property when the males were away due to war, etc.

1776

Abigail Adams, wife of President John Adams, uses her influence to remind her husband that women’s rights should be incorporated into the work that he was doing at the Continental Congress. “If particular care and attention is not paid to the ladies, we are determined to forment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound to any laws in which we have no voice or Representation.”

1783
New Jersey State statutes authorize voting to “all inhabitants of the state, of full age” if they had at lease 50 pounds. Women who met this qualification were eligible to vote in the state.

1792
Mary Wollstonecraft ( a Brit) published “A Vindication of the Rights of Women.” Considered to be one of the most important documents written on behalf of women, the core of her argument was that education was important is the shaping of character and women had a right to an education.

1833
The Female Anti-Slavery Society of Philadelphia is founded. The group gathered hundreds of thousands of signatures to abolish slavery in the DC area. By 1837, there were 1006 branches with 150,000 members, over half of which were women. Women were instrumental in the mobilization of public opinion calling for the abolition of slavery. Abolition was the issue in the U. S. from 1840-50.

Abolition was the first major social and political issue in which women participated. As a result of the connections made while fighting for abolition, women learned the basic procedures used in political mobilization, and took this experience and later applied it to the efforts to fight for their own rights.

1840

Lucretia Mott is denied a seat at the World Anti-Slavery Conference. After 7 years work for the abolition of slavery, and helping to form the Philadelphia Anti-Slavery Society, Mott is denied hear seat on the basis of her sex, and is only allowed to sit in the gallery. At the conference Mott met Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and both were struck by the fact that it was supposed to be a world convention, but half the population of the world was being denied access to the convention. Mott and Stanton realized that they would now need to begin working for women’s rights along with the abolishment of slavery.

1848
Seneca Falls Convention – the first political gathering specifically held to address the rights of women. 240 women attended, and the women drafted the “Declaration of Sentiments,” a feminist model of the Declaration of Independence. Written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, it stated that “all men and women were created equal” and included 18 grievances among them were women’s inability to keep their own wages, women’s inability to obtain an education, and lack of the right to vote.

1850
Harriet Tubman – Tubman escorted Black to freedom 19 times in what became known as the Underground Railroad. Over 300 slaves escaped to the North as a result of her efforts.

1863
National Women’s Loyal League is formed. Organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B Anthony, the league passed a resolution to launch a petition campaign urging Congress to vote for emancipation
of all slaves.

1869
Suffragists begin organizing. Susan B Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton founded the National Women’s Suffragist Association, while Lucy Stone organized the American Women’s Suffragist Association. The intention was to bring the anti-slavery and women’s right movements together to fight for both simultaneously.

Black leaders felt that the two issues should be separate, so Stanton and Anthony broke away with the intention of seeking an amendment to the Constitution guaranteeing women the right to vote. Feminists felt that as long as half the population was denied rights, all other issues were secondary.

1869
Territory of Wyoming becomes the first location in the U. S. where women are granted the right to vote.

1872

Victoria Woodhull runs for President of the United States. A free spirit who believed in free love, legalized prostitution, she made women think about their status, pushed societal boundaries, and forced men to acknowledge that women were not included or protected in the rights and privleges provided under the constitution.

1874
The Supreme Court rules on Minor v Happersett. This case challenged the 15th amendment that granted former male slaves the right to vote. Women challenged the amendment by acts of civil disobedience and demanding the ability to vote in the election of 1872. Hundreds of women broke the law by attempting to vote in that election. Virginia Minor was an officer of the National Women’s Suffrage Association and attempted to vote in St. Louis. The registrar, Reese Happersett refused to allow her to register, so she brought suit against him. While Minor lost the case at the Supreme Court, women were mobilized to launch an all out state by state effort to change the state constitutions and press for an amendment to the constitution.

1878
Women’s suffrage amendment first submitted to Congress. Penned by Susan B. Anthony, the amendment simply states, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied……on account of sex….” Arlen A. Sargent of California introduced the legislation in congress, and it was reintroduced each session of Congress FOR 45 YEARS UNTIL IT FINALLY PASSED IN 1919.

1879
The first woman argues a case before the Supreme Court. Attorney Belva Lockwood petitioned the Supreme Court for permission to plead a case. When denied, she appealed to Congress which passed a bill enabling female attorneys to argue before the highest court in the land.

1889

Jane Addams found Hull House. Hull House provided the poor and immigrant residents of Chicago with assistance. Hull House provided medical service, child care, English classes, legal aid, citizenship
classes, vocational training and a host of other services to the poor and immigrant populations of Chicago. Hull House existed at a time when Chicago offered few services to its residents. It spawned a new profession – social work. Jane Addams and her activist supporters became advocates for their constitutes and worked for reforms in child labor, sanitation, housing and working conditions.
Addams was the first woman awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

1890
National Women’s Suffrage Assoc. and American Women’s Suffrage join forces becoming the National American Women’s Suffrage Assoc. The focus of the group shifts from a constitutional amendment to advocating change in state constitutions. When the reality sets in that state by state change is more time consuming, they revert back to the plan for constitutional amendment.

1893
Mary Elizabeth Lease runs for U. S. Senate in Kansas.

1898
Charlotte Perkins Gilman publishes “Women and Economics.” The book examines the effects of industrialization on women and advocates self sufficiency and equal rights.

1903
The National Women’s Trade Union League is formed to improve the wages and working conditions for women.

1911

The Triangle Shirtwaist fire occurs in New York City. 146 women perish in the fire because they are locked in the fire and unable to escape. Leaders of the National Women’s Trade Union League petitioned for new laws regulating safety conditions in factories. As a result of these petitions, the most comprehensive factory safety laws and standards were enacted in New York State, and paved the way for future national laws.

1915
The Women’s Peace Party forms. Feminist Leaders of the era such as Jane Addams, Charlotte Perkins Gilman and others formed the party in an effort to avert the U. S. participation in World War I. They requested that President Woodrow Wilson mediate for peace rather than U. S. involvement. Their slogan was “Listen to the women for a change.” After the war, the group merged with its European counterparts forming the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom which still exists today, and is active in trying to resolve conflicts around the world as well as nuclear disarmament.

1916
Jeanette Rankin becomes the first woman elected to the United States Congress. Additionally, Rankin was the only member of Congress to vote against U. S. involvement in WW II.

1919

The 19th Amendment is passed by Congress, giving women the right to vote. All but one of the women who began the campaign in 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York, lived to see the passage of the Amendment. Elizabeth Cady Stanton passed away in 1902 and Susan B. Anthony in 1906.

1932
Francis Perkins becomes the first woman Cabinet office being appointed Secretary of Labor under FDR. She was instrumental in the passage of the Wagner Act, the Social Security Act, and the Fair Labor Standards Act, three of FDR’s most important achievements. She was also responsible for innovative ideas for working people such as unemployment insurance, minimum wage, and maximum hours.

1935
National Council of Negro Women is organized. As a constructive force for Negro women, the group concentrated on the status of African American women in America and pushed for their acceptance into labor unions, government jobs, and the military.

1936

Eleanor Roosevelt transforms the role of the First Lady. Because President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, her husband, was confined to a wheelchair, Mrs. Roosevelt was his eyes and ears, traveling around the country, reporting her findings to him. She was influential in insuring that the New Deal included programs specifically for women, and assured African Americans that New Deal policies addressed their needs and concerns. As a result of her efforts, the African American voting block shifted its loyalty from the Republicans to the Democrats. She was unabashedly committed to equality and civil rights, and when the military doubted the abilities to African Americans to fly planes, she fought stereotyping by flying with Black pilots.

She gave women journalist exclusive access to her in an effort to promote their careers. Her connections with women who were in the forefront of the social reform movement at the time was especially important during the depression because she was aware of the efforts made by women to keep families intact during extreme economic difficulties. She is considered to be our most influential First Lady, and many of the programs included in the New Deal can be directly contributed to her efforts.

1941

World War II increases the need for Women Workers. As a result of the U. S. entrance into WWII, and the vast number of men who entered the military, more opportunities for employment were available to women in industries that had been previously prohibited to women. Between 1940 and 1945, women in the work force rose from 12 to 19 million. Barriers to employment like age and marital status were lifted and women were able to work in industries such as plane manufacturing to support the war effort.

Known as “Rosie the Riveter,” documentary films have shown their enthusiastic efforts as they became skilled laborers in factories doing jobs previously held by men. Additionally, women were able to fill jobs in government, teaching and other industries that previously excluded women. African American women were afforded the opportunity to leave low paying domestic service positions and obtain higher paying jobs in defense factories. One half of the domestic worker population quit to take the more lucrative and higher status jobs that were available.

Married women also returned to work to assist in the war effort, often becoming the breadwinners of the family. These women, many for the first time in their lives, were now responsible for the distribution of their paychecks, giving them a newfound independence.

1955

Rosa Parks refused to relinquish her seat to a white passenger on a bus in Montgomery Alabama. This act of defiance launched a year long boycott of the bus system in Montgomery. Spurred on by Parks’ defiance, JoAnn Robinson, a profess or at Alabama State College, distributed flyers to help establish the boycott. Primary support for the boycott came from women, many of whom walked to work. Finally, in 1956, the Supreme Court ruled in Browder v Gayle that Alabama’s bus segregation policy was unconstitutional.

1962
Dolores Huerta helps found the United Farm Workers Union. She was the chief negotiator on the first contract drawn with grape growers, and remained the negotiator for the next 5 years. Women were the primary proponents of the policy of non-violence during the strike.

1963
Congress passes the Equal Pay Act of 1963. As a result of the recommendation from the Presidents Commission on the Status of Women, Congress passed the equal pay act which was the first national legislation for women since the progressive era of the 1920’s. Its intent was to remove pay disparity, and provide equal pay for men and women in jobs of equal skills, responsibility and effort. Because of exceptions made for seniority, merit, quantity and quality of work, it was difficult to enforce the law.

Recently, a former female physician at UCLA Medical Center won a law suit after she discovered that she was making $50,000 less than her male counterparts. Disparity still exists today despite the law making it illegal.

1964
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits Sex Discrimination. Within this act is Title VII which states that employment discrimination based on race or sex is prohibited. This law established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission which is responsible for enforcing the provisions of Title VII.

1966
The National Organization of Women (NOW) is founded. Its purpose is to advance the rights of woman.

1968

Shirley Chisholm is elected to Congress. She was the first African American congresswoman.

1971
The National Women’s Caucus is founded. Its purpose was to encourage more women to participate in politics.

1972
Congress passes the Equal Rights Amendment. Included in the passage was a provision that limited the amount of time allowed for ratification by the states. With the first year, 28 states had ratified, leaving 10 states needed for the Constitutional amendment ratification. Opponents launched a major offensive, claiming that women would be subjected to the draft if there was ratification, driving a wedge between working women and homemakers. By 1977, 35 states had ratified, leaving only 3 more needed. Opponents dug in and managed to prevent ratification before time ran out in 1982.

1973
Roe V Wade – the landmark Supreme Court case that states that women have a constitutional right to make decisions regarding pregnancy, and the government has no right to interfere. The case was argued by two Texas attorneys, Sarah Weddington and Linda Coffee. Weddington was 26 years old at the time.

1976
Women admitted to the U. S. Service Academies. Congress passes legislation that mandated the acceptance of women into institutions such as West Point, Annapolis and the Air Force Academy.

1978
The first woman is elected to the Senate in her own right. Nancy Kassebaum was the first woman elected who was not the widow of a congressman. She served in the Senate from 1978-1997.

1981
Sandra Day O’Connor becomes the first woman appointed to the Supreme Court. She remained the only woman until Bill Clinton nominated Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 1993.

1984

Geraldine Ferraro becomes the Democratic Vice-Presidential Candidate

1985
Emily’s List is founded. Its function is to assist in funding women candidates to congress. The acronym stands for “Early Money is like Yeast” (it raises doughs), and it created a donor network that raises funds for pro-choice Democratic women running for governors, Senators, and the House of Representatives. It is the largest single financial resource for women candidates in the nation.

1989
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL) becomes the first Hispanic woman elected to the U. S. House of Representatives

1992
Women are elected to Congress in record numbers. Dubbed the “Year of the Woman”, 24 women were elected to the House of Representatives, and 6 women to the Senate (5 of the 6 still remain).

California becomes the first state to elect two women to the Senate – Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer.

For the first time, women account for 10 percent of the membership in Congress. By 2005 the percentage grows to 15%.

Carol Mosley Braun (IL) becomes the first African American woman elected to the Senate.

1993

Janet Reno becomes the first woman to serve as Attorney General

1997

Madeleine Albright becomes the first woman to serve as the Secretary of State, making her the highest ranking woman in government.

2001
Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the first First Lady to be elected to a national office.

2005
21 members of the California congressional delegation in Washington are women, and they comprise 38% of the state’s total representation on Congress.

Condoleeza Rice becomes the first African American woman to become Secretary of State

2007
Nancy Pelosi becomes the first woman Speaker of the House of Representatives

2008

Hillary Rodham Clinton becomes the first woman to win a presidential primary contest.

Susan’s Note: Below, I’ve provided the transcript, interspersed with images I grabbed from the video as it was playing. For easier reading, I am not placing the text in blockquote format.

BILL MOYERS: If William Shakespeare were around I suspect he might describe the recent flap between the Obama and Clinton camps as much ado about nothing or a tempest in a teapot. Senator Clinton was heard to say that it took a president – Lyndon Johnson – to consummate the work of Martin Luther King by passing the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Almost no one in the media bothered to run the whole quote. Here it is:

HILLARY CLINTON: Dr. King’s dream began to be realized when President Lyndon Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, when he was able to get through Congress something that President Kennedy was hopeful to do, the president before had not even tried, but it took a president to get it done.”

BILL MOYERS: There was nothing in that quote about race. It was an historical fact, an affirmation of the obvious. But critics pounced. THE NEW YORK TIMES published a lead editorial accusing Senator Clinton of “the distasteful implication that a black man needed the help of a white man to effect change.” Suddenly we had a rhetorical inferno on our hands, with charges flying left and right, and pundits throwing gasoline on the tiniest of embers. Fortunately the furor has quieted down, and everyone’s said they’re sorry, except THE NEW YORK TIMES. But I can’t resist this footnote to the story.

Many many years ago, I was a young White House Assistant, when President Johnson at first wanted Martin Luther King to call off the marching, demonstrations, and protests. The civil rights movement had met massive resistance in the south, and the south, because of the seniority system, controlled congress, making it virtually impossible for congress to enact laws giving full citizenship to black Americans, no matter how desperate their lives. LBJ worried that the mounting demonstrations were hardening white resistance.

He had been the master of the Senate, the great persuader, who could twist your arm with such flair and flattery you thought he was actually doing you a favor by wrenching it from its socket. He reckoned that with a little time he could twist enough arms in Congress to end, or neutralize, the power of die-hard racists – all of them, including some of his old mentors, white supremacists who threatened to bring the government, if not the country, to its knees before they would see blacks eat at the same restaurants, go to the same schools, drink from the same fountains, and live in the same neighborhoods as whites.

As the pressure intensified on each side, Johnson wanted King to wait a little longer and give him a chance to bring Congress around by hook or crook. But Martin Luther King said his people had already waited too long. He talked about the murders and lynchings, the churches set on fire, children brutalized, the law defied, men and women humiliated, their lives exhausted, their hearts broken. LBJ listened, as intently as I ever saw him listen. He listened, and then he put his hand on Martin Luther King’s shoulder, and said, in effect: “OK. You go out there Dr. King and keep doing what you’re doing, and make it possible for me to do the right thing.” Lyndon Johnson was no racist but he had not been a civil rights hero, either. Now, as president, he came down on the side of civil disobedience, believing it might quicken America’s conscience until the cry for justice became irresistible, enabling him to turn Congress. So King marched and Johnson maneuvered and Congress folded.

NEWS COVERAGE: President Johnson calls for all Americans to back what he calls a turning point in history.

BILL MOYERS: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 ended segregation in public places.

MARCHERS: “We shall overcome…

BILL MOYERS: But they weren’t done. King kept on marching, this time for the right to vote, and once again Johnson kept his word, and did the right thing. As one of his young assistants, I stood on the floor of the House that ides of March when morality and politics converged, and watched the faces of congress transfixed…mesmerized… knowing they were riding the surf of history as the president of the United States enlisted all of us in the cause.

LYNDON JOHNSON: It’s all of us, who must overcome the crippling legacy of bigotry and injustice. And we shall overcome.

BILL MOYERS: As he finished, Congress stood and thunderous applause shook the chamber. Johnson would soon sign into law the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and black people were no longer second class citizens. Martin Luther King had marched and preached and witnessed for this day. Countless ordinary people had put their bodies on the line for it, been berated, bullied and beaten, only to rise, organize and struggle on, against the dogs and guns, the bias and burning crosses. Take nothing from them; their courage is their legacy. But take nothing from the president who once had seen the light but dimly, as through a dark glass — and now did the right thing. Lyndon Johnson threw the full weight of his office on the side of justice. Of course the movement had come first, watered by the blood of so many, championed bravely now by the preacher turned prophet who would himself soon be martyred. But there is no inevitability to history, someone has to seize and turn it. With these words at the right moment — “we shall overcome” — Lyndon Johnson transcended race and color, and history, too — reminding us that a president matters, and so do we.

:::::::::::::::

Bill Moyers’ Journal airs weekly on PBS. Check here for local listings. I “DVR” it every Friday night at 9 p.m. on KCTS, Seattle’s PBS affiliate, seen throughout the Northwest and Western Canada. Moyers’ Web site promptly provides videos and transcripts, and makes for some truly fun digging and reading.