The Civil Rights Act, as well as the Social Security Act and the Higher Education Act of 1965, played an important role in helping to expand the middle class in the United States of America. These acts were passed into law as a result of a determined effort by the United States government to strengthen and grow the middle class. This legislation allowed the middle class, or the average American, access to health care, home ownership, education, protected savings and made sure the rights of the middle class were protected in the workplace.