The civil rights struggle and political evolution in the sixth congressional district of Louisiana, 1943 to 1975

This study follows the careers of two congressmen who represented Louisiana's sixth congressional district from 1943 to 1975 and documents their response to the civil rights movement. This paper analyzes the impact of the civil rights movement on regional politics just as it examines the impact it had on the careers of congressmen, James H. Morrison and John R. Rarick.;Much like the South as a whole the sixth congressional district was in the process of political realignment. Significantly, the civil rights movement caused a shift in the political allegiance of the sixth congressional district from the Democratic to Republican Party.;This political realignment culminated in the election of Republican William Henson Moore III and demonstrated the changing political character of the sixth district and much of the wider South as well.;Key words: American History, Political Science, James H. Morrison, John R. Rarick.