Álvarez 1

Víctor Álvarez

Dr. Jason Dew

ENGL 1302 280

11 April 2023

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its effects on African Americans’ lives

Most might not realize this, but the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed relatively

recently, as of the writing this work, almost fifty-nine years ago. Millions of Americans who

are alive today were also alive in 1964. Even some African Americans still alive today went

through segregation back in the 20th century. Nonetheless, the consequences of this landmark

legislation has already left a mark on not only African Americans but the rest of the American

people, some arguing its effects have been positive, others pointing out its defects without

disregarding its positive outcomes, while a minority denouncing it. The positive effects of the

Civil Rights Act of 1964 have been present all across the country ever since its passing, and

even extending to those who pertain to communities that have not suffered discrimination in

the past. But what are these effects? Are they positive in legal aspects? Economic aspects? Or

even societal aspects — have Americans become more tolerant thanks to this legislation?

Overall, has the Civil Rights Act of 1964 been effective? Did it achieve its purpose?

Before the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, segregation in the South was not

only adopted voluntarily by many business owners, but it was also mandatory. Once the bill

had passed, public accommodations (privately-owned hotels, restaurants, etc.) were not

allowed anymore to deny services to any individual for the matter of his or her race, ethnicity,

creed, and other demographic factors an individual cannot control—this was enforced by Title

II of the statute. Brian Landsberg points out that many believed Southern businesses would not

comply so easily to this law. Nonetheless, he states in his article that voluntary compliance had

been reported throughout Southern urban locations (16). Landsberg also argues that the quick
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desegregation of public accommodations was caused by the potential increase in profits by

business owners thanks to the influx of new potential customers, and even workers (19).

Whether caused by economic incentives or not, it is still important to note the effects of

desegregation in public accommodations and the effects on society as a whole. Landsberg

highlights that public accommodations are “the most integrated institutions in the U.S.” and

that “one who goes to a café in a Southern town today would find blacks and whites […] sitting

at adjacent tables or even the same table” (18). This last statement highlights the importance

of the 1964 Civil Rights Act’s effect on the American society’s views on race. On the issue of

societal change, Landsberg concludes that “legislation can have a major impact on morality”

(21). In addition, in his article for the Boston University Law Review journal, Gavin Wright

states that “the case of public accommodations thus stands as a prime example of social norms

transformed by change in law” (763).

Continuing on the economic aspect of the statute, Wright argues that Title VII of the

1964 Civil Rights Act caused an increase in Black employment in the South. Title VII forbade

employers with over fifteen employees to deny employment for reasons of ethnicity, religion,

race, or sex. Southern African Americans saw the most increase in employment, since—

contrary to their Northern counter-parts—White Southerners had been denying employment

to Blacks in the South, demonstrated in the non-growth of employment among Southern Blacks

between 1950 and 1960 (Wright 11). It is also worth noting that employment was not the only

measure that increased in Black sections of the Southern population, wages increased as well,

even among low-level positions. This increase in wages for Blacks is credited to the growth in

skilled employment of African Americans, which itself is tied to Title VII of the Act and its

abolition of segregationist structures. Growth in employment among Blacks continued growing

throughout the rest of the century and still into the 21st century (Wright 18). This economic

improvement not only affected African Americans, but the whole South entirely. It can be said
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that Title VII had an impact on society as employment issues tied to racial discrimination

sharply decreased throughout the 1980s (Wright, 20).

Julien Aiken et al. also back the increase of Black employment in their article for the

Journal of Business and Psychology, “The Origins and Legacy of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.”

Aiken et al. claim that the Act had “fundamentally altered the demography of the American

workplace.” In 1966, the EEOC had reported that more than 50% of private organizations had

no male Black employees, with it having dropped to 21% by 2002. At the same time, African

Americans began to be hired for public administration and government jobs at a faster rate than

Whites throughout the 1970s and 1980s, with increases in government employment of 9.7%

and 4%, respectively. Title VII did not only benefit Blacks—it also protects religious

minorities and women. Notably, women saw an increase in representation in managerial

sectors between the late 1960s and the early 1990s (Aiken et al., 395).

Protections against discriminatory government agencies and programs were also a

result of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Title VI states that any federally-funded program that

denies services to an individual because of their color, ethnicity, national origin, race, or sex

will be subject to funding cuts from the Federal Government. The cutting of funding on

agencies, institutions, and programs prevented tax-payer dollars to economically maintain

segregationist structures (qtd. in Coleman, 732). Also, according to Hugh Davis Graham,

whose opinion was compiled in Mary Coleman’s article for the University Press of Virginia,

“the effective use of Title VI, in combination with executive orders, encouraged desegregation

in employment opportunity in the South.”

The Act also attended the legal disadvantages African Americans had. A predecessor

to anti-segregation legislature was the Supreme Court’s ruling of Brown v. Board of Education

(1957), where it held that segregated schools were inherently unequal and, by consequence,

schools must desegregate; this decision also overturned the previous ruling made in Plessy v.
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Ferguson (1898) where the “separate but equal” doctrine was first established, leading to the

progressive dismantling of legal segregationist structures. However, desegregation in schools

was not immediate, in fact some state legislatures refused to allow and partake in academic

desegregation, and, according to Frank Brown, “Prior to the 1964 Act, it was difficult to secure

plaintiffs in hundreds of racially segregated school districts,” attributed to “fear of reprisals by

southern communities” (182). This, then, made it difficult for legal actions to be taken against

those school districts that had not desegregated. However, the passing of the Act granted the

Attorney General the power to bring suits against those districts that had refused to segregate,

finally eradicating—or at least bringing efforts to eradicate—discriminatory structures in

education.

It is also safe to say that the 1964 Civil Rights Act has left a mark on American society

and its views on race. While it is true that discrimination based on race, as well as other racial

inequalities are still issues, it is safe to say that society as a whole has made significant progress.

Desegregation in public accommodations, as stated, reflects this. Nowadays, public spaces

such as restaurants and hotels host customers with different ethnic and racial backgrounds and

customers seem to be unbothered by sharing spaces with individuals different than them.

Likewise, the theories that White customers would boycott business that desegregated proved

false in the immediate aftermath of the passing of the Act, attributed to a societal change thanks

to the Act. Society’s views on race can also be seen in the increased employment, income, and

share of skilled and government jobs by African Americans. While Blacks could have

potentially been seen “incapable of performing administrative jobs” even as recently as the

early 20th century; an extremely rapid increase in high-paid skilled jobs was observed in the

immediate aftermath of the Act, leading to believe this stigma was eradicated from society.

Additionally, Coleman claims in her article that, instead of balkanizing or creating a more

robust hierarchy in American society, the Act expanded the idea of American citizenship.
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And despite the several positive changes such as the desegregation of institutions and

labor laws that prohibit job discrimination based on demographic factors, segregation can still

be seen throughout the United States. While Landsberg notes that, indeed, today Southern

businesses are desegregated and even integrated, he points out that individuals in these

accommodations are still likely to come from segregated neighborhoods, and even attend

segregated academic institutions (18). Frank Brown equally notes that segregation still exists.

He notes that “southern states no longer enforce segregation; however, by private choice, the

different races and ethnic groups live and attend school in racially isolated neighborhoods

(186). The Act succeeded in abolishing state-enforced segregation, but, based on the current-

day segregation in aspects far from government control, it can be said that general segregation

has not been eradicated.

While yes, the 1964 Civil Rights Act is not perfect and still has many issues to address

as well as many other demographic populations to protect, such as gender and sexual minorities,

its consequences, legacies, and importance must not be undermined by its imperfections.

Indeed, the Act has not achieved total desegregation in American society; however, it achieved

its practical goal, which was to end institutionalized segregation. The Act has had impacts on

different aspects of society—such as the economic, legal, and moral aspects—in benefit to not

only African Americans, but also other vulnerable demographic groups, such as women and

religious minorities. Society’s views changes are seen in the inclusion and diversity throughout

the different structures (labor, government, education) found across the country. Additionally,

a quantitative improvement of quality of life had been seen, especially in Southern

communities, known for their historic discrimination against ethnic and racial minorities. It is

safe to say that American society has gradually improved these last sixty years.
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Works Cited

Landsberg, Brian. “Public Accommodations and the Civil Rights Act of 1964: A Surprising

Success?” Hamline Journal of Public Law and Policy, vol. 36, no. 1, 1 October 2015,

pp. 1-25.

Wright, Gavin. “The Regional Economic Impact of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.” Boston

University Law Review, vol. 95, no. 759, 2015, pp. 759-779.

Aiken, Juliet et al. “The Origins and Legacy of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.” Journal of

Business and Psychology, Vol. 28, No. 4, December 2013, pp. 383-399.

Brown, Frank. “The First Serious Implementation of Brown: The 1964 Civil Rights Act and

Beyond.” The Journal of Negro Education, vol. 73, no. 3, Summer 2004, p. 182.

Coleman, Mary. “The Legacies of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.” The American Political Science

Review, vol. 95, no. 3, September 2001, p. 731.