Civil Rights Act of 1964 enforced the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution by ensuring a legislative act that would prevent discrimination and extend equal protection under the law. The bill in its entirety protects all Americans, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, national background, and gender. It was and still is considered to be a landmark bill, in spite of the fact that the Fourteenth Amendment already technically guarantees equal protection to all citizens of the United States. However, practice and theory are different beasts. President Johnson understood this, and foresaw the need to push forward legislation that would create a more perfect union offering liberty and justice to all people.

The Civil Rights Act was surprisingly controversial, in a nation that prided itself on its values of equality and freedom. It took centuries for females and non-whites to have voting privileges in the United States. The battle for true equality...
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