Signing of the Voting Rights Act

Date: August 6, 1965 • Location: Washington, United States

U.S. president Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Voting Rights Act into law, outlawing literacy tests and other discriminatory voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread disfranchisement of African Americans.

Lyndon Baines Johnson, also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 37th vice president under President John F. Kennedy, assuming the office upon Kennedy's assassination. Johnson also served in both houses of the U.S. Congress, where he gained a reputation as a talented and persuasive legislator.