Kerner Commission Report Summary

There have been many presidential commissions, but few have been more famous—or more controversial—than the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, popularly known as the Kerner Commission. Appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in July 1967, as a series of deadly riots convulsed African American neighborhoods in many U.S. cities, the commission had the task of explaining why the violence was occurring and what to do about it. Johnson was a strong supporter of Black rights and a champion of social reform to help the poor and minorities. The Kerner Commission proposed many reforms to augment the Johnson administration’s efforts, but the president was cool to the recommendations because the Vietnam War had become so expensive that the country could no longer afford costly new social programs.