KELLIE CARTER JACKSON: The Great Society.

In 1964, Lyndon B. Johnson won the presidency with this plan

for a Great Society, a plan that would

lead to some of the most important

legislation in US history.

We're going to take a look at the origins

of the Great Society, what it entailed,

and the legacy to this day.

During the early 1960s, more than 20%

of America's population lived below the poverty line

and civil rights demonstrations were making headlines.

In 1964, during a presidential campaign event

at Ohio University, LBJ gave the first of two famous Great

Society speeches promising Americans a society

where quote, "No man who wants to work will fail to find it.

Where no citizen will be barred from any door

because of his birthplace or his color or his church.

Where peace and security is common among neighbors

and possible among nations."

His plan included new government programs

and social welfare legislation.

Throughout LBJ's presidency, Congress enacted over 200 laws

and programs, including education programs and policy

to provide health care, improve public housing,

expand transportation, and defend civil liberties.

Many of these federal programs were incredibly successful

and are still around today like Medicare, Medicaid, the Food

Stamp Act, the National Endowment for the Arts,

and Upward Bound, a program that helps disadvantaged high school

students get into college.

Congress elevated the Department of Transportation

to a cabinet-level office and funded new

public transportation projects.

Major funding for American public schools

came through the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

Head Start created funding for early childhood education

in preschools for poor working families.

LYNDON B. JOHNSON: Head Start cares about the whole family.

It reaches beyond the child, the parents who may not understand

their children's needs.

KELLIE CARTER JACKSON: The Voting Rights Act

banned literacy tests and other discriminatory processes

that kept African-Americans from the polls.

You can even thank LBJ for Sesame Street.

Both PBS and National Public Radio were part of the plan

for a Great Society.

Another major milestone of LBJ plan

was the Civil Rights Act, which outlawed discrimination

based on skin color, race, national origin, religion,

or gender.

It established the equal opportunity

clause, which we still see on job applications today.

But perhaps the most important part of the Great Society plan

was the War on Poverty.

Between 1965 and 1968, spending to help the poor

doubled for $1 billion to $2 billion.

More than 40 programs were also put in place.

And the effect was profound.

The percentage of Americans below the poverty line

dropped from 20% to 12% and has remained below 15% ever since.

While LBJ's programs have certainly made an impact,

a lot of them didn't last.

Some blame the Vietnam War for diverting necessary funding.

Others look to LBJ's political choices.

He didn't run for a second term in office,

so he didn't see many of his policies through.

The presidents to follow would dismantle some programs

and expand others.

While politicians still wrestle over

how to deal with poverty, health care, education,

the impact of LBJ's efforts toward a Great Society

are undeniable.

Whatever you think about the policies,

there's no doubt that a Great Society is one

where no child will go unfed or unschooled

and where peace and security is the norm in all neighborhoods.