to name a few. it was legal in 1964 to refuse to hire somebody because of the color of the skin or their gender. a year earlier president john f. kennedy had addressed the nation to urge action on civil rights. >> it ought to be possible, in short, for every american to enjoy the privileges of being american without regard to his race or his color, but this is not the case. >> but then kennedy was assassinated. surprisingly his successor, lyndon baines johnson, a staunch southerner, took up the cause, a cause that looked hopeless. why? here's american historian and johnson biographer, robert carroll. >> civil rights had always died in the center because of the filibuster, but this bill wasn't even in the senate. it wasn't even on the house floor. it was in the house rules committee, which was chaired by this racist from virginia, judge howard w. smith, and he wasn't letting it out. >> american political parties