Howard W. Smith

Howard Worth "Judge" Smith (February 2, 1883 – October 3, 1976) was an American politician. A DemocraticU.S. Representative from Virginia, he was a leader of the informal but powerful conservative coalition.

Smith offered an amendment to insert "sex" after the word "religion" as a protected class of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Congressional Record shows Smith made serious arguments, voicing concerns that white women would suffer greater discrimination without a protection for gender. Reformers, who knew Smith was hostile to civil rights for blacks, assumed that he was doing so to defeat the whole bill.

The prohibition of sex discrimination was added on the floor by Smith. While Smith strongly opposed civil rights laws for blacks, he supported such laws for women. Smith's amendment passed by a vote of 168 to 133.