Similarities Between President Johnson And Dr. King: Beneficial Or Powerful?

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If the empowered and the powerless come together, then change is almost inevitable. President Johnson and Dr. King achieved their goal by each using their collective power and influence over their followers in order to spread their message, eventually calling the masses into action in their support. President Johnson pushed for legal change more, which was well paired with Dr. King, who was turning heads and altering mindsets as well as opinions. Dr. King was in support of LBJ and this may have been enough for some of his followers to be convinced he was really a presidential candidate they could trust, but for those who needed more evidence, Dr. King’s words were more than sufficient. Together, Dr. King and President Johnson were able to bring …show more content…

Days after taking office after the assassination of President Kennedy spoke on the phone with Dr. King and he expressed that he wished to use his influence within the government to ensure that the Civil Rights Bill proposed by his predecessor would not be forgotten, but to be passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives as well as the Senate. Upon hearing this, Dr. King agreed saying, “I think it's so imperative. I think one of the great tributes that we can pay in memory of President Kennedy is to try to enact some of the great, progressive policies that he sought to initiate,” (LBJ and MLK). This is just one example of how they understood their relationship and how President Johnson used his position within the government to help he and King reach their …show more content…

King genuinely supported President Johnson both through his candidacy and through their joint efforts in Civil Rights. In fact, Dr. King himself conveyed himself, that he felt that, “His [President Johnson] emotional and intellectual involvement was genuine and devoid of adornment,” (Berman). As a man with a huge following, by Dr. King simply verbalizing these feelings, he rallied support under President Johnson. After the passing of the Bill, King was firmly convinced that LBJ was that candidate for him. He even went out of his way to bring President Johnson additional support. As a matter of fact, according to King Encyclopedia, “King had campaigned actively for Johnson and welcomed the victory saying, ‘the forces of good will and progress have triumphed,’” (Johnson, Lyndon Baines (1908-1973)) Winning the election, LBJ continued to fight for both voting and civil rights. As seen in the documentary produced by HBO, All the Way, once elected LBJ went on to pass the Voting Bill that would have a defined impact on the future of the United States (Roach). By helping one another, they helped each other to reach their goals of expanding civil and voting rights in the United States. They were able to accomplish so much together, because they eached worked efficiently within their respective