2024
LBJ Liberty & Justice For All Award
Joe Biden46th President of the United States
President Joe Biden
On July 29, 2024, President Joe Biden delivered a keynote address at LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas, to commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act.
Initially scheduled for earlier this month, President Biden and other dignitaries participated in a public program at the LBJ Auditorium that was live-streamed to the nation. Ambassador Andrew Young and award-winning actor, screenwriter, producer, and director Bryan Cranston, among others, participated in the program.
Before the event celebrating the 60th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act at the LBJ Library, it was our privilege to honor President Joe Biden with the LBJ Liberty & Justice for All Award, our highest recognition, for his commitment to preserving and strengthening democracy—what he has called ‘the central cause’ of his administration. His efforts have included supporting legislation that will bolster voting rights, which have been severely weakened since the Voting Rights Act was enacted nearly 60 years ago. Additionally, he has returned America to democratic norms at home while strengthening and expanding NATO and working to prevent the backsliding of democracy abroad.
Lynda Johnson Robb, left, and Luci Baines Johnson present President Joe Biden with the LBJ Liberty & Justice for All Award. Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz.
“We’re honored to have President Biden at the LBJ Library to mark the 60th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, a law that was a giant step toward fulfilling our nation’s most sacred promise of ‘all men are created equal’” said Mark K. Updegrove, President & CEO of the LBJ Foundation and a presidential historian. “Last year, President Biden said civil rights are ‘the unfinished fight of America.’ We look forward to commemorating this milestone with the President and hearing his vision for how we can continue to make real the promise of America for all of its citizens.”
In 2014, President Obama and former Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter attended the Civil Rights Summit at the LBJ Presidential Library to commemorate the Civil Rights Act’s 50th anniversary.
"There are no problems we cannot solve together, and very few that we can solve by ourselves."
- President Lyndon B. Johnson
About the LBJ Foundation
Established by President and Mrs. Johnson in 1969, the LBJ Foundation is a nonprofit organization comprised of a board of trustees and administrative staff that supports the LBJ Presidential Library and the LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin.
The LBJ Presidential Library, operated under the auspices of the National Archives and Records Administration, maintains the archive of President Johnson's administration and political career and promotes his legacy while providing, in his words, "a springboard for the future" through public programming aimed at addressing the issues of our time. The Foundation enhances the Library by directing public programming, administering the museum's store and admissions operations, and directing grants for researchers and scholars.
The LBJ School of Public Affairs embodies President Johnson's living legacy by nurturing leaders and public servants in the hopes that they will pursue what he called "the oldest, most basic mission of our country: to right wrong, to do justice, to serve man." The Foundation provides financial support for the school for the outstanding education it offers its graduate students in public policy and government affairs, community outreach, and global initiatives.
All bearing our 36th President's name, these three institutions—the LBJ Foundation, the LBJ Presidential Library, and the LBJ School of Public Affairs—preserve Lyndon B. Johnson's consequential legacy while pursuing his hopeful vision for the future.