BOMBS & BODIES: Vietnam Overwhelms Civil Rights

On August 5, 1964, two seemingly unrelated events were headline news.  Lyndon Johnson, recently elevated to the presidency upon the assassination of President Kennedy, aspired to focus his administration on issues of social justice and civil rights.  Johnson had just signed the landmark Civil Rights Act.  However, events in Vietnam intervened and Johnson's focus changed to not "being responsible for America's losing a war to the Communists."  On the day he signed the Civil Rights Act, there were 16,000 America "military advisors" in Vietnam.  On the day he left office with a damaged presidency, there were 536,000 military personnel in Vietnam.  Effective enforcement of the Civil Rights Act, and enactment of supplementary social justice legislation, was temporized.