On March 20, 1965, Mrs. Bertram Jeffrey sent this  letter to Representative Emanuel Cellar, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, advocating for the passage of the Voting Rights Act for the continuance of a true democratic system. Letter from Mrs. Bertram Jeffrey in Favor of the Voting Rights Act, 3/20/1965, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives (ARC 593573)
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On March 20, 1965, Mrs. Bertram Jeffrey sent this  letter to Representative Emanuel Cellar, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, advocating for the passage of the Voting Rights Act for the continuance of a true democratic system.

Letter from Mrs. Bertram Jeffrey in Favor of the Voting Rights Act, 3/20/1965, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives (ARC 593573)

As the question of Suffrage is now agitating the public mind, it is the hour for Woman to make her demand. Form Letter from E. Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucy Stone Asking Friends to Send Petitions for Woman Suffrage to their Representatives in Congress, 12/26/1865, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives (ARC 306686)
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As the question of Suffrage is now agitating the public mind, it is the hour for Woman to make her demand.

Form Letter from E. Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Lucy Stone Asking Friends to Send Petitions for Woman Suffrage to their Representatives in Congress, 12/26/1865, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives (ARC 306686)

On June 19, 1964, the U.S. Senate passed what would become the Civil Rights Act by a vote of 73 to 27. Nine days prior to voting on the bill, the Senate successfully voted for cloture, thus ending debate on the legislation. The House would pass the Senate changes on July 2. President Lyndon Johnson would sign the bill into law later that day. Roll Call on H.R. 7152, SEN 88A-M1, June 19 1964, Records of the U.S. Senate
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On June 19, 1964, the U.S. Senate passed what would become the Civil Rights Act by a vote of 73 to 27. Nine days prior to voting on the bill, the Senate successfully voted for cloture, thus ending debate on the legislation. The House would pass the Senate changes on July 2. President Lyndon Johnson would sign the bill into law later that day.

Roll Call on H.R. 7152, SEN 88A-M1, June 19 1964, Records of the U.S. Senate

Despite the ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment in 1870, African-Americans in the South faced tremendous obstacles to voting. Congress’s Reconstruction Era laws to enforce the 15th Amendment were struck down by the Supreme Court in 1883, and for decades, there had been no further Federal attempts to protect civil rights. As a result, very few African-Americans were registered voters in the former Confederate states, and African Americans exercised little political power, locally or nationally. They also risked harassment, intimidation, economic reprisals, and physical violence when they tried to register or vote. By the 1950s, the nation’s attention focused once again on civil rights. Congress passed Civil Rights Acts in 1957, 1960, and 1964, but none of these laws were strong enough to prevent voting discrimination by local officials. While many counseled patience, the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Council) and SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) launched protests in Selma, Alabama that dramatically underscored the need for voting rights legislation. As a result of these protests and the decisive actions of the House and Senate leadership working in tandem with President Lyndon Johnson, a milestone accomplishment was achieved in the protection of voting rights in the South. Senate Bill 1564, passed on May 26, 1965 by a vote of 77 to 19. The House passed its own bill H.R. 6400 on July 10. Together, the House and Senate reconciled the differences in the two bills through a conference committee on August 2. President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law on August 6. Roll Call Vote Tally on S. 1564, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, 5/26/1965, SEN89A-M1, Records of the U.S. Senate (ARC 5637787)
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Despite the ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment in 1870, African-Americans in the South faced tremendous obstacles to voting. Congress’s Reconstruction Era laws to enforce the 15th Amendment were struck down by the Supreme Court in 1883, and for decades, there had been no further Federal attempts to protect civil rights. As a result, very few African-Americans were registered voters in the former Confederate states, and African Americans exercised little political power, locally or nationally. They also risked harassment, intimidation, economic reprisals, and physical violence when they tried to register or vote.

By the 1950s, the nation’s attention focused once again on civil rights. Congress passed Civil Rights Acts in 1957, 1960, and 1964, but none of these laws were strong enough to prevent voting discrimination by local officials. While many counseled patience, the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Council) and SNCC (Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee) launched protests in Selma, Alabama that dramatically underscored the need for voting rights legislation.

As a result of these protests and the decisive actions of the House and Senate leadership working in tandem with President Lyndon Johnson, a milestone accomplishment was achieved in the protection of voting rights in the South. Senate Bill 1564, passed on May 26, 1965 by a vote of 77 to 19. The House passed its own bill H.R. 6400 on July 10. Together, the House and Senate reconciled the differences in the two bills through a conference committee on August 2. President Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law on August 6.

Roll Call Vote Tally on S. 1564, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, 5/26/1965, SEN89A-M1, Records of the U.S. Senate (ARC 5637787)

Mrs. E. Jackson wrote to the House Judiciary Committee the day after Bloody Sunday, March 7, 1965, in Selma, Alabama. She was reacting to scenes of police brutality during a voting rights march that many Americans witnessed on television news programs. The interlined handwriting in pencil is likely that of House Judiciary Chairman Emanuel Celler, who was Mrs. Jackson’s representative in Congress and an active supporter of voting rights legislation in the House. Interested in teaching or learning more about Voting Rights Act of 1965? Visit our web-lesson, Congress Protects the Right to Vote: the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Letter from Mrs. E. Jackson, 3/8/1965, Records of the U.S. House of Representatives (ARC 2173239)