Johnson's Great Society and the Power of Imaginative Policy
Join me in revisiting President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society—a vision so bold and humane that it reminds us that policy, when rooted in imagination and empathy, can transform lives and society.
Unveiled at the University of Michigan in 1964, Johnson’s Great Society was not merely a set of legislative goals. It was an invitation to reimagine what America could be: a nation that confronts poverty, expands opportunity, and insists that the arts, education, health, and environment all belong within the public good.
I couldn't agree more. We all pay taxes and it's amazing for them to show up in these ways instead of in the form of tax breaks for billionaires.
From Medicare and Medicaid to Head Start, from the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to the creation of the National Endowment for the Arts and Humanities, Johnson’s agenda demonstrates that policy is not just procedural—it is profoundly imaginative. It calls on us to see what does not yet exist and to make it real through collective will.
Of course, the Great Society was imperfect and incomplete. Its promise was undermined by war abroad and resistance at home. Yet even now, many of its programs endure—proof that moral imagination, when wedded to political courage, can leave a lasting legacy.
Today, as public education and higher education face existential threats in Texas and across the nation—whether through the dismantling of DEI, the the politicized restructuring of community college funding, or the privatization of public schools—we would do well to remember Johnson’s example. The Great Society teaches us that policy can be visionary, compassionate, and creative all at once. What we need now are leaders and citizens bold enough to dream again—to imagine not just better schools, but a more just and caring society worthy of the name.
While it is true that Lyndon B. Johnson’s legacy is often overshadowed by the tragedy of Vietnam, this framing overlooks how profoundly his Great Society transformed life for millions—especially within minoritized communities. For Black, Chicano/Mexican American, Indigenous, and poor white families alike, Johnson’s domestic vision opened long-closed doors to education, healthcare, housing, and the arts.
To these communities, Johnson is not remembered primarily as the commander-in-chief of an unwinnable war, but as the president who—however imperfectly—used the levers of federal power to widen the circle of human possibility. Head Start, Medicare, Medicaid, and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act did not simply redistribute resources; they expanded hope.
For those historically denied access to the nation’s promise, the Great Society stands as enduring evidence that policy, when animated by imagination and moral courage, can indeed bend the arc toward justice. That is the kind of imagination—and courage—we need once again in Texas and across the nation.
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November 17, 2017 | Last Updated: May 27, 2025
Riding A Wave of Empathy
On November 22, 1963, Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in as President of the United States after the killing of John F. Kennedy.
The assassination of Kennedy left American citizens reeling. They felt empathy, even sympathy for Johnson as he became president under such difficult circumstances. Johnson took advantage of this support to push through key elements of Kennedy’s legislative agenda—in particular, civil rights legislation and tax cuts.
By the time he became President, Johnson wasn’t a green politician nor a pushover. After serving stints in the U.S. House of Representative and the U.S. Senate—where he was the youngest Senate minority leader and then Senate majority leader—he’d earned a reputation as a powerful leader who knew how to get things done.
He became Kennedy’s running mate in 1960 and was sworn in as Vice President of the United States in January 1961. By the time Kennedy was killed, the public knew Johnson could get things done and was prepared to back him.
War On Poverty
In March 1964, Johnson introduced the Office of Economic Opportunity and the Economic Opportunity Act during a special message to Congress. He’d hoped to help the underprivileged break the poverty cycle by helping them develop job skills, further their education and find work.
To do this, he created a Job Corps for 100,000 disadvantaged men. Half would work on conservation projects and the other half would receive education and skills training in special job training centers.
In addition, Johnson tasked state and local governments with creating work training programs for up to 200,000 men and women. A national work study program was also established to offer 140,000 Americans the chance to go to college who could otherwise not afford it.
Other initiatives the so-called War on Poverty offered were: a Community Action program for people to tackle poverty within their own communities the ability for the government to recruit and train skilled American volunteers to serve poverty-stricken communities loans and guarantees for employers who offered jobs to the unemployed funds for farmers to purchase land and establish agricultural co-ops help for unemployed parents preparing to enter the workforce.
Johnson knew battling poverty wouldn’t be easy. Still, he said, “…this program will show the way to new opportunities for millions of our fellow citizens. It will provide a lever with which we can begin to open the door to our prosperity for those who have been kept outside.”
Medicare and Medicaid
By the time Johnson took office, mainly two groups of Americans were uninsured: the elderly and the poor.
After Johnson became President and Democrats took control of Congress in 1964, Medicare and Medicaid became law. Medicare covered hospital and physician costs for the elderly who qualified; Medicaid covered healthcare costs for people getting cash assistance from the government. Both programs served as safety nets for America’s most vulnerable.
Head Start and Education Reform
To empower parents and make sure every child had a shot of success in life no matter their social or economic circumstances, Johnson, politician and activist Sargent Shriver, and a team of child development experts launched Project Head Start.
The Head Start program started as an eight-week summer camp run by the Office of Economic Opportunity for 500,000 children ages three to five. Since the program’s inception, it has served over 32 million vulnerable children in America.
Education reform was also a key part of the Great Society. In 1965, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act was passed. It guaranteed federal funding for education in school districts whose student majority was low-income. It also:
- funded preschool programs
- supported school libraries
- purchased school textbooks
- provided special education services
Urban Renewal
The Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965 provided federal funds to cities for urban renewal and development. For cities to receive the funds, they had to establish minimum housing standards.
The law also provided easier access to home mortgages and a controversial rent-subsidy program for vulnerable Americans who qualified for public housing.
Support for Arts and Humanities
In September 1965, Johnson signed the National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities Act. It declared “the arts and humanities belong to all the people of the United States” and that culture is a concern of the government, not just private citizens.
The law also established the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts to study the humanities and fund and support cultural organizations such as museums, libraries, public television, public radio and public archives.
Environmental Initiatives
To help battle worsening water pollution, Johnson signed the Water Quality Act in 1965 to help set national water quality standards. Also signed in 1965, the Motor Vehicle Air Pollution Control Act formed the first vehicle emissions standards.
Furthermore, Johnson’s administration passed laws to protect wildlife and rivers and form a network of scenic trails among historic landmarks.
The Great Society Backlash and Vietnam
Not every American citizen or politician was satisfied with the results of Johnson’s Great Society agenda. And some resented what they saw as government handouts and felt the government should butt out of Americans' lives altogether.
And despite the enormous amount of legislation passed by his administration, Johnson is seldom remembered as a champion of the underprivileged and at-risk. Instead, he’s arguably better known as the commander-in-chief who forced America into an unwinnable war that resulted in over 58,000 American military fatalities.
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