Letter - September 17, 1957

Nixon replied to King’s August 30th letter on September 17th. He wrote that they both agreed the Civil Rights Act of 1957 “was not as strong as we would have liked.” He added that they were also in agreement that the Act was “much better than no bill at all…” Nixon appreciated King’s “generous comments” regarding his role in the 1957 Civil Rights bill, and added, “My only regret is that I have been unable to do more than I have. Progress is understandably slow in this field, but at least we can be sure that we are moving steadily and surely ahead.”