To apply any other test–to deny a man his hopes because of his color or race, his religion or the place of his birth—is not only to do injustice, it is to deny America and to dishonor the dead who gave their lives for American freedom. Our fathers believed that if this noble view of the rights of man was to flourish, it must be rooted in democracy. The most basic right of all was the right to choose your own leaders. The history of this country, in large measure, is the history of the expansion of that right to all of our people.


The American Promise (1965)

Lyndon B. Johnson Quotes

To apply any other test–to deny a man his hopes because of his color or race, his religion or the place of his birth—is not only to do injustice, ...

To apply any other test–to deny a man his hopes because of his color or race, his religion or the place of his birth—is not only to do injustice, ...

To apply any other test–to deny a man his hopes because of his color or race, his religion or the place of his birth—is not only to do injustice, ...

To apply any other test–to deny a man his hopes because of his color or race, his religion or the place of his birth—is not only to do injustice, ...