This dissertation examines the relationship between the civil rights movement and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) manned space program between 1957 and 1978. From its onset, the motivations and justifying factors for the American manned space program were primarily political in nature. The issue of race, though not a factor in deciding space policy, played a significant role in determining how the manned space program was publicly discussed. From the late 1950s to the late 1970s, two broad patterns unfolded regarding the relationship between the U.S. space program and the issue of race. First, both mainstream U.S. attitudes and government policies regarding the space program became more racially inclusive, albeit at an uneven pace. Second, African American attitudes changed from seeking active participation in the American exploration of space to questioning the priority of spending federal monies on outer space rather than on terrestrial needs. Utilizing contemporary media accounts, first-hand accounts, and archival material, including documents from NASA, the NAACP, and the National Urban League, this project analyzes how racial concerns and minority activism influenced the projection of NASA's public image and its internal recruitment policies.