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President Lyndon Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with 75 pens, giving them away as souvenirs. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. received one and called it a cherished possession. The bill outlawed racial segregation and discrimination and was passed after the longest filibuster in Senate history.
July 2, 1964 was not only a memorable day in the White House. It was also a day of black ink. That ink filled the 75 pens President Lyndon Johnson used to sign the Civil Rights Act of 1964, arguably the most important civil rights legislation in US history, as it outlawed racial segregation and discrimination. at work. Signing the bill required 75 pens because Johnson gave them away as souvenirs to mark the historic occasion.
Receiving it were members of the crowd that surrounded Johnson at the signing, including US Senators and civil rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Upon receiving one of the first pens, Dr. King said it immediately became a of her most cherished possessions, adding that she “really should have had a lot of them.”
Senators Hubert Humphrey and Everett McKinley Dirksen, the Senate Democratic and Republican leaders, respectively, received early pens for their efforts in getting the bill through their chamber. Not to be upstaged, Attorney General Robert Kennedy took six pens, ostensibly to distribute to Justice Department officials who helped pass the measure. While the day was important, Johnson’s signature was restrained, reading simply: “Lyndon B. Johnson. approved July 2, 1964, Washington, DC”
The Civil Rights Act of 1964:
The Senate finally approved the bill after the longest filibuster in its history, which lasted 54 days.
More than 80% of Republicans in the Senate and House voted for the bill, compared with about 60% of Democrats.
The only meeting between civil rights icons Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X took place during the bill debate.
