Days after Bloody Sunday, President Lyndon Johnson asks Congress for a voting-rights act and adopts the movement's anthem: 'We shall overcome.'
At a Glance
- Date
- 15 March 1965
- Location
- Washington, D.C.
- Key people
- Lyndon B. Johnson
- Category
- Civil Rights Movement
- Source
- Presidential address, March 15, 1965 · LBJ Presidential Library
What It Meant Then
It committed the full weight of the presidency to Black voting rights.
What It Means Now
The speech paved the way for the Voting Rights Act five months later.
Cite this page
- MLA
- “Johnson's 'We Shall Overcome' Address.” Black-History.com, 30 Sept. 2026, https://black-history.com/on-this-day/johnsons-we-shall-overcome-address/.
- APA
- Black-History.com Editors. (2026, September 30). Johnson's 'We Shall Overcome' Address. Black-History.com. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/johnsons-we-shall-overcome-address/
- Chicago
- Black-History.com Editors. “Johnson's 'We Shall Overcome' Address.” Black-History.com. September 30, 2026. https://black-history.com/on-this-day/johnsons-we-shall-overcome-address/.
Editorial Note
By the Black-History.com editors. Last reviewed 30 September 2026. To suggest a primary source or a correction, write to editors@black-history.com or use our corrections form.