Monday, March 2, 2015

Pollak on Doar on Selma and the Voting Rights Act

John Doar escorts James Meredith at Ole Miss, 1962 (LC)
“You hear the name John Doar fleetingly in the recent film, Selma,” writes James H. Johnston, a member of the Board of Directors of the Historical Society for the DC Circuit.  “Most who see the film won’t know who Doar was, but his key role and that of the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice in converting the drama into enactment and enforcement of the Voting Rights Act are detailed in the oral history of Steve Pollak, Doar’s assistant and successor as head of the Civil Rights Division.”  Johnston's essay, which draws upon the complete interview of Stephen Pollak (who is the society’s president), is here.