The Civil Rights Act of 1964 stands as one of the great legislative milestones of the twentieth century. Its mandates reach, for good or ill, into wide swathes of American social and economic life. It has spawned a raft of similar legislation, both here and abroad. And it has long sat at the center of much scholarly thinking about American public law. For all these reasons, the fiftieth anniversary of its enactment merits remembrance and reflection.