Indians in the Curriculum:
20 Handouts for Middle and High School
History and Social Studies
By Kerry Dunne

President Johnson's Message, 1968

Background:

This speech to Congress on March 6, 1968 is part of Lyndon B. Johnson’s civil rights legacy. It illustrates his concern for the social welfare of traditionally disadvantaged or oppressed Americans. Reprinted in Documents of United States Indian Policy, edited by Francis Paul Prucha, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, 1975.

Study and Discuss

1.     What does LBJ see as the new goals for Indian policy?

2.     What specific ideas does Johnson want carried out by the federal government to aid Native Americans and their First Nations?

3.     Does Johnson want Indian people involved in these policies and decisions? Why?

4.     Why does he feel that the United States government has a responsibility to assist Native Americans?

Resources 19: President Johnson's Message, 1968