The Great Society

Civil Rights Act (1964)

banned racial segregation in public education and facilities, and prohibited discrimination in jobs and housing.

Voting Rights Act (1965)

outlawed poll taxes, literacy tests, and other devices that had been used to prevent Southern blacks from voting

Economic Opportunity Act to Congress (1964)

• The bill created the Job Corps and the Community Action Program, which aimed to eliminate poverty through job creation and block grants to local communities for services such as Head Start for early childhood development.

• The Office of Economic Opportunity was established to oversee the disbursement of funds to community-based anti-poverty programs, and the Food Stamp Act of 1964 expanded the federal food stamp program.

Job Corps

trained young men and women between the ages of 16-21 in the work skills they needed to acquire better jobs and move out of poverty

Head Start

prepared disadvantaged preschoolers for kindergarten students

Food Stamp Act (1964)

Expanded the federal program to help more people buy food

National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities (1965)

Provided Federal funding for the Arts and creative and scholarly projects

Medicare (1965)

Provided health insurance for all people 65 and older

Medicaid (1965)

Provided funds to states to pay for medical care for the poor and disabled

Elementary and Secondary Education Act (1965)

Provided Federal funds to poor school districts; funds for special education programs; and funds to expand Head Start

Higher Education Act (1965)

Provided federal scholarships for post-secondary education

Immigration Act (1965)

Abolished discriminatory quotas based on national origins

Child Nutrition Act (1966)

Added breakfasts to the school lunch program

Johnson established two new cabinet depts:

1. Dept. of Transportation

2. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development

Beautify America Campaign

• Lady Bird Johnson campaign

• Highway Beautification Act

Highway Beautification Act

removed billboards from federal roads

What type of area was expanded during Johnson’s presidency?

federal parks and wilderness areas

What was Congress’s response to the book Unsafe at Any Speed (1965)

they passed regulations of the automobile industry —> improved safety

Recation to Silent Springs (1962)

clean air and water laws