Host Becky Bullard welcomes guest Meghan Ross to get into LBJ’s legacy on civil rights, his transition to the presidency after JFK’s assassination, his nickname for his peen, and so much more.

Get email updates about The Texan Optimist podcast, support our work with a tax-deductible contribution, or reach out for sponsorship opportunities at TheTexanOptimist.com

LINKS:

Watch Meghan’s show “How We Grieve” on PBS!

https://www.pbs.org/show/how-we-grieve/

October 29: See me speak on a Future Forum panel at the LBJ Library! “Beyond the Newsroom: Covering Texas Today”: www.lbjlibrary.org/events/future-forum/2026-10-29_beyond-newsroom-covering-texas-today

Check out Meghan’s other work: https://meghanrross.com/

Buy books from my Bookshop.org link (your purchase helps support my work!): https://bookshop.org/lists/the-texan-optimist-book-list

Visit the LBJ Library: https://www.lbjlibrary.org/

More reading and sources:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/to-fight-for-civil-rights-lyndon-b-johnson-settled-for-the-middle-ground-180981482/

https://www.aaihs.org/the-hidden-history-of-the-civil-rights-act-of-1960/

https://www.universityarchives.com/auction-lot/type-1-photo-of-jfk-after-1960-convention-nod-vis_cd848ac9b0

https://www2.gwu.edu/~erpapers/mep/displaydoc.cfm?docid=erptoc

https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/about-jfk/historic-speeches/televised-address-to-the-nation-on-civil-rights

https://www.britannica.com/event/Birmingham-Childrens-Crusade

https://www.ms.now/msnbc/lyndon-johnson-civil-rights-racism-msna305591

​​https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/04/what-the-hells-the-presidency-for/358630/

THANK YOU to:

Record ATX - https://www.recordatx.com/

Lady Diarist - https://ladydiarist.substack.com/

The Hudspeth Foundation - https://hudspethfoundation.org/

On this solo episode of The Texan Optimist, host Becky Bullard gets into the story of the Texans who ended the all-white primary for the entire country. Thanks, Dr. Lonnie Smith! He won the Smith v Allwright Supreme Court case with the help of NAACP attorney Thurgood Marshall and many other brave folks.

Get email updates about The Texan Optimist podcast, support our work with a tax-deductible contribution, or reach out for sponsorship opportunities at TheTexanOptimist.com

LINKS:

In Austin? Come out and hang! October 10: Gay History Month Screening with author Dale Carpenter! https://www.thetexanoptimist.com/events/gay-history-month-screening-of-the-texan-optimist

Buy books from my Bookshop (your purchase helps support my work!): https://bookshop.org/lists/the-texan-optimist-book-list

13th Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krfcq5pF8u8

THANK YOU to:

Record ATX - https://www.recordatx.com/

Lady Diarist - https://ladydiarist.substack.com/

The Hudspeth Foundation - https://hudspethfoundation.org/

Nikki DaVaughn joins The Texan Optimist host Becky Bullard to discuss the story of the Texans who legalized gay sex – Tyron Garner and John Lawrence. (And all the amazing attorneys and advocates who worked so hard for the Lawrence v Texas Supreme Court victory!)

Get email updates about The Texan Optimist podcast, support our work with a tax-deductible contribution, or reach out for sponsorship opportunities at TheTexanOptimist.com

LINKS:

October 10: Gay History Month Screening with author Dale Carpenter! https://www.thetexanoptimist.com/events/gay-history-month-screening-of-the-texan-optimist

Nikki’s website: https://www.nikkidavaughn.com/

Shop my book list for this episode:

The Texan Optimist on BookShop.org

Go see Fat Bottom Cabaret: https://tickets.austintheatre.org/13159

Gilley’s - https://texasarchive.org/2017_00513

THANK YOU to:

Record ATX - https://www.recordatx.com/

Lady Diarist - https://ladydiarist.substack.com/

The Hudspeth Foundation - https://hudspethfoundation.org/