Ronald Reagan and Civil Rights
When Ronald Reagan was a child, his family lived in a number of different towns and cities in Illinois, including Monmouth, Galesburg and Chicago. In 1919 they returned to Tampico, Illinois and lived above the H.C. Pitney Variety Store. (After his election as president, Reagan would joke, in reference to his residing in the upstairs White House private quarters, that he was "living above the store again". According to one of his biographers, Paul Kengor, the author of God and Ronald Reagan, Reagan's mother Nelle taught her son respect for others regardless of race or colour. The young Ronald Reagan was strong in his opposition to racial discrimination, and he recalled a time when the local inn in Dixon, Illinois would not allow African-Americans to stay there. According to the story, Reagan would bring African-Americans who were refused lodging at the inn back to his home, where his mother invited them to stay the night and have breakfast the next morning.
Reagan had been a Democrat and a supporter of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. But in 1962 Reagan formally switched his allegiance to the Republican Party. He said "I didn't leave the Democratic Party. The party left me." At the time he was giving speeches on behalf of the party and expressed strong libertarian views. For example, Reagan opposed certain civil rights legislation, saying "If an individual wants to discriminate against Negroes or others in selling or renting his house, it is his right to do so". He would later reverse his opposition to voting rights and fair housing laws. He strongly denied having racist motives and claimed that his support of a landlord's right to discriminate on the basis of race was for libertarian reasons, not because of any racism on his part.
From 1967 to 1975 Reagan served as Governor of California. As Governor, Reagan was a strong supporter of capital punishment. The Supreme Court of California issued its People v. Anderson decision, which invalidated all death sentences issued in California prior to 1972, though the decision was later overturned by a constitutional amendment. The only execution during Reagan's governorship was on April 12, 1967, when Aaron Mitchell's sentence was carried out by the state in San Quentin's gas chamber.
In 1969, Reagan, as Governor, signed the Family Law Act which was the first no fault divorce legislation in the United States.
In 1980, during the presidential campaign, an issue arose concerning a state ballot initiative in Reagan's home state of California known as Proposition 6, or the Briggs Initiative. Proposition 6 would have banned gays, lesbians, and supporters of LGBT rights from working in public schools in California. Reagan was opposed to this initiative and his opposition to the initiative was instrumental in its landslide defeat by Californian voters. Reagan published an editorial in which he stated "homosexuality is not a contagious disease like the measles..." and that prevailing scientific opinion was that a child's sexual orientation cannot be influenced by someone else.
Within months of President Reagan’s inauguration in 1981, one of the first steps taken by Reagan was to obtain the repeal of the 1868 federal law which prohibited the expenditure of funds for a U.S. Embassy to the Vatican. Reagan was successful in obtaining the repeal without real opposition. On January 10, 1984 that full diplomatic relations between the United States and the Vatican were established despite the opposition of the office of the Secretary of State.
Midway into his second term, Reagan adopted a combative stance in the War on Drugs. He said that "drugs were menacing our society" and promised to fight for drug-free schools and workplaces, expanded drug treatment, stronger law enforcement and drug interdiction efforts, and greater public awareness. In 1986, Reagan signed a drug enforcement bill that budgeted $1.7 billion to fund the War on Drugs and specified mandatory minimum penalties for drug offenses. The bill was criticized for promoting significant racial disparities in the prison population and critics also charged that the policies did little to reduce the availability of drugs on the street, while resulting in a great financial burden for America, among other reasons because of a swelling in the number of those incarcerated. Defenders of the effort point to success in reducing rates of adolescent drug use. First Lady Nancy Reagan made the War on Drugs her main priority by founding the "Just Say No" drug awareness campaign, which aimed to discourage children and teenagers from engaging in recreational drug use by offering various ways of saying "no". Mrs. Reagan traveled to 65 cities in 33 states, raising awareness about the dangers of drugs including alcohol.
Reagan signed the Immigration Reform and Control Act in 1986, legislation that made it illegal to knowingly hire or recruit illegal immigrants, required employers to attest to their employees' immigration status, and granted amnesty to approximately 3 million illegal immigrants who entered the United States prior to January 1, 1982, and had lived in the country continuously. Critics argued that the employer sanctions were without teeth and failed to stem the tide of illegal immigration. Reagan signed the act into law at a ceremony held beside the newly refurbished Statue of Liberty. At the ceremony he said, "the legalization provisions in this act will go far to improve the lives of a class of individuals who now must hide in the shadows, without access to many of the benefits of a free and open society. Very soon many of these men and women will be able to step into the sunlight and, ultimately, if they choose, they may become Americans."
Reagan nominated Vaughn R. Walker, who would later be revealed to be the earliest known gay federal judge, to the United States District Court for the Central District of California. However, the nomination stalled in the Senate, and Walker was not confirmed until he was renominated by Reagan's successor, George H. W. Bush.
On November 2, 1983 Reagan signed a bill to honor civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day becomes a Federal holiday to coincide with Dr. King’s January 15th birthday, to be observed on the 3rd Monday of each January.
The consensus of most historians is that Reagan did not fare well with minority groups during his term as president, especially African-Americans. This was largely due to his opposition to affirmative action policies. In 1986, over 30 percent of the African-American population had an income below the poverty level. However, his support of Israel throughout his presidency earned him support from many Jews, and he became the first Republican ever to win the Jewish vote. He emphasized family values in his campaigns and during his presidency, although he was the first president to have been divorced. As one historian put it, "the combination of Reagan's speaking style, unabashed patriotism, negotiation skills, as well as his savvy use of the media, played an important role in defining the 1980s and his future legacy."
Reagan had been a Democrat and a supporter of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. But in 1962 Reagan formally switched his allegiance to the Republican Party. He said "I didn't leave the Democratic Party. The party left me." At the time he was giving speeches on behalf of the party and expressed strong libertarian views. For example, Reagan opposed certain civil rights legislation, saying "If an individual wants to discriminate against Negroes or others in selling or renting his house, it is his right to do so". He would later reverse his opposition to voting rights and fair housing laws. He strongly denied having racist motives and claimed that his support of a landlord's right to discriminate on the basis of race was for libertarian reasons, not because of any racism on his part.
From 1967 to 1975 Reagan served as Governor of California. As Governor, Reagan was a strong supporter of capital punishment. The Supreme Court of California issued its People v. Anderson decision, which invalidated all death sentences issued in California prior to 1972, though the decision was later overturned by a constitutional amendment. The only execution during Reagan's governorship was on April 12, 1967, when Aaron Mitchell's sentence was carried out by the state in San Quentin's gas chamber.
In 1969, Reagan, as Governor, signed the Family Law Act which was the first no fault divorce legislation in the United States.
In 1980, during the presidential campaign, an issue arose concerning a state ballot initiative in Reagan's home state of California known as Proposition 6, or the Briggs Initiative. Proposition 6 would have banned gays, lesbians, and supporters of LGBT rights from working in public schools in California. Reagan was opposed to this initiative and his opposition to the initiative was instrumental in its landslide defeat by Californian voters. Reagan published an editorial in which he stated "homosexuality is not a contagious disease like the measles..." and that prevailing scientific opinion was that a child's sexual orientation cannot be influenced by someone else.
Within months of President Reagan’s inauguration in 1981, one of the first steps taken by Reagan was to obtain the repeal of the 1868 federal law which prohibited the expenditure of funds for a U.S. Embassy to the Vatican. Reagan was successful in obtaining the repeal without real opposition. On January 10, 1984 that full diplomatic relations between the United States and the Vatican were established despite the opposition of the office of the Secretary of State.
Midway into his second term, Reagan adopted a combative stance in the War on Drugs. He said that "drugs were menacing our society" and promised to fight for drug-free schools and workplaces, expanded drug treatment, stronger law enforcement and drug interdiction efforts, and greater public awareness. In 1986, Reagan signed a drug enforcement bill that budgeted $1.7 billion to fund the War on Drugs and specified mandatory minimum penalties for drug offenses. The bill was criticized for promoting significant racial disparities in the prison population and critics also charged that the policies did little to reduce the availability of drugs on the street, while resulting in a great financial burden for America, among other reasons because of a swelling in the number of those incarcerated. Defenders of the effort point to success in reducing rates of adolescent drug use. First Lady Nancy Reagan made the War on Drugs her main priority by founding the "Just Say No" drug awareness campaign, which aimed to discourage children and teenagers from engaging in recreational drug use by offering various ways of saying "no". Mrs. Reagan traveled to 65 cities in 33 states, raising awareness about the dangers of drugs including alcohol.
Reagan signed the Immigration Reform and Control Act in 1986, legislation that made it illegal to knowingly hire or recruit illegal immigrants, required employers to attest to their employees' immigration status, and granted amnesty to approximately 3 million illegal immigrants who entered the United States prior to January 1, 1982, and had lived in the country continuously. Critics argued that the employer sanctions were without teeth and failed to stem the tide of illegal immigration. Reagan signed the act into law at a ceremony held beside the newly refurbished Statue of Liberty. At the ceremony he said, "the legalization provisions in this act will go far to improve the lives of a class of individuals who now must hide in the shadows, without access to many of the benefits of a free and open society. Very soon many of these men and women will be able to step into the sunlight and, ultimately, if they choose, they may become Americans."
Reagan nominated Vaughn R. Walker, who would later be revealed to be the earliest known gay federal judge, to the United States District Court for the Central District of California. However, the nomination stalled in the Senate, and Walker was not confirmed until he was renominated by Reagan's successor, George H. W. Bush.
On November 2, 1983 Reagan signed a bill to honor civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day becomes a Federal holiday to coincide with Dr. King’s January 15th birthday, to be observed on the 3rd Monday of each January.
The consensus of most historians is that Reagan did not fare well with minority groups during his term as president, especially African-Americans. This was largely due to his opposition to affirmative action policies. In 1986, over 30 percent of the African-American population had an income below the poverty level. However, his support of Israel throughout his presidency earned him support from many Jews, and he became the first Republican ever to win the Jewish vote. He emphasized family values in his campaigns and during his presidency, although he was the first president to have been divorced. As one historian put it, "the combination of Reagan's speaking style, unabashed patriotism, negotiation skills, as well as his savvy use of the media, played an important role in defining the 1980s and his future legacy."