US Presidency
1965

THE PRESIDENT. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. This March week has brought a very deep and painful challenge to the unending search for American freedom. That challenge is not yet over, but before it is ended, every resource of this Government will be directed to insuring justice for all men of all races, in Alabama and everywhere in this land. That is the meaning of the oath that I swore before Almighty God when I took the office of the Presidency. That is what I believe in with all of my heart. That is what the people of this country demand. Last Sunday a group of Negro Americans in Selma, Alabama, attempted peacefully to protest the denial of the most basic political right of all the right to vote. They were attacked and some were brutally beaten. From that moment until this, we have acted effectively to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of Selma, and to prevent further violence and lawlessness in this country wherever it occurred.