Why was the EEOC necessary in the 1960s as part of the Great Society?

Many of us in this course are dedicated to improving race relations.  As this week demonstrates, there are diverse ways to achieve class and race equality.  This week’s discussion examines a concern common in today’s workplace, discrimination and legal protection from it. What protects employees from on-the-job discrimination? The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).

Established as part of the broader war on poverty, Great Society and inequality in the 1960s, legislators founded the EEOC within Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC legally protects employees and job applicants from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. Recently added policies include: protecting former military personnel from unfair hiring practices (1973); shielding workers with disabilities from inequitable hiring, firing and job tasks (1990); and defending employees over forty years old from age-related prejudice (1967). The EEOC, finally, investigates employer retaliation against employees who had filed claims of discrimination.

DISCUSSION QUESTION. Why was the EEOC necessary in the 1960s as part of the Great Society? Given the many advancements made against discrimination today, do we still need the EEOC and Great Society program? Explain your responses – historically and today.