This summer marked the 46th anniversary of one of the most famous pieces of legislation in American history: the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The principles of equality and individual liberty underlying the act — and the Civil Rights Movement in general — are undoubtedly some of the most noble and virtuous causes mankind has ever advocated.
Many modern history textbooks focus on the Civil Rights Act as a starting point for racial progress in America. However, the monumental legacy of the act itself all too often overshadows the remarkable advances African Americans and other minority groups were making decades before the passage of the bill — despite the political subjugation they faced.
In “Civil Rights: Rhetoric or Reality?” economist Thomas Sowell points out that the most dramatic economic advancements of African Americans in both incomes and occupations occurred not after the passage of the Civil Rights Act in 1964 but well before the civil rights legislation of 1957 and 1964 were signed into law.
In the two decades prior to the Civil Rights Act, Sowell notes African Americans more than doubled their representation in professional, technical and other high-level positions.
“The Civil Rights Act of 1964 represented no acceleration in trends that had been going on for many years,” Sowell concludes. In fact, the percentage of black people employed as managers and administrators was no higher after the act had passed 1967 than it had been in 1964 or 1960.
The real significance of the act isn’t so much that it attempted to end discriminatory practices in the business sector where many minorities were actually making rapid progress. What made the act so significant was it eliminated many of the institutional forms of racism within the American government dating all the way back to the Reconstruction era.
Contrary to popular belief, government action wasn’t the driving force behind racial progress in America. Much of the African-American community’s progress was already taking place in the private sphere despite ongoing political oppression.
In many ways, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was more a reflection of the philosophical change that had already taken roots in the hearts and minds of many American citizens.
Though the Civil Rights Act was certainly a landmark moment in American history, it’s also important to realize not all legislation that came in the wake of the Civil Rights Act was a clear-cut success.
Many prominent economists like Sowell now argue that many ensuing Supreme Court rulings and government interventions “on behalf of racial equality” not only failed to achieve their desired results but also actually worsened conditions for the minority groups they were designed to protect.
A primary example of a counterproductive legislation Sowell mentions is the wave of affirmative action cases and welfare programs that followed the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Far from benefiting minority groups, scholars like Sowell argue that affirmative action and welfare actually proved counterproductive for African Americans on many levels and only served to exacerbate preexisting racial tensions.
In the end, the enormous strides taken by minority groups prior to 1964 show that the victories of the Civil Rights Movement cannot ultimately be confined to any one particular piece of legislation. They should instead be attributed to the revolutionary thinkers who emphasized morality and equality over hatred and politics and to the inspirational ability of many minorities to overcome political subjugation and abuse.
Nearly a half century later, it is important for students to remember the brave men and women of this time who, despite enormous government obstacles, were able to progress and prosper at unprecedented rates.
Scott Burns is a 21-year-old economics and history senior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_sburns.
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Contact Scott Burns at [email protected]