Read Anywhere and on Any Device!

Subscribe to Read | $0.00

Join today and start reading your favorite books for Free!

Create Free Account

Before Brown: Civil Rights and White Backlash in the Modern South

Raymond Arsenault

3.5/5 ( ratings)

Before Brown details the ferment in civil rights that took place across the South before the momentous Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954. This collection refutes the notion that the movement began with the Supreme Court decision, and suggests, rather, that the movement originated in the 1930s and earlier, spurred by the Great Depression and, later, World War II—events that would radically shape the course of politics in the South and the nation into the next century.

This work explores the growth of the movement through its various manifestations—the activities of politicians, civil rights leaders, religious figures, labor unionists, and grass-roots activists—throughout the 1940s and 1950s. It discusses the critical leadership roles played by women and offers a new perspective on the relationship between the NAACP and the Communist Party.

Before Brown shows clearly that, as the drive toward racial equality advanced and national political attitudes shifted, the validity of white supremacy came increasingly into question. Institutionalized racism in the South had always offered white citizens material advantages by preserving their economic superiority and making them feel part of a privileged class. When these rewards were threatened by the civil rights movement, a white backlash occurred.

Language: English

Pages: 448

Format: Paperback

Publisher: University Alabama Press

Release: September 13, 2004

ISBN: 0817351345

ISBN 13: 9780817351342

Before Brown: Civil Rights and White Backlash in the Modern South

Raymond Arsenault

3.5/5 ( ratings)

Before Brown details the ferment in civil rights that took place across the South before the momentous Brown vs. Board of Education decision in 1954. This collection refutes the notion that the movement began with the Supreme Court decision, and suggests, rather, that the movement originated in the 1930s and earlier, spurred by the Great Depression and, later, World War II—events that would radically shape the course of politics in the South and the nation into the next century.

This work explores the growth of the movement through its various manifestations—the activities of politicians, civil rights leaders, religious figures, labor unionists, and grass-roots activists—throughout the 1940s and 1950s. It discusses the critical leadership roles played by women and offers a new perspective on the relationship between the NAACP and the Communist Party.

Before Brown shows clearly that, as the drive toward racial equality advanced and national political attitudes shifted, the validity of white supremacy came increasingly into question. Institutionalized racism in the South had always offered white citizens material advantages by preserving their economic superiority and making them feel part of a privileged class. When these rewards were threatened by the civil rights movement, a white backlash occurred.

Language: English

Pages: 448

Format: Paperback

Publisher: University Alabama Press

Release: September 13, 2004

ISBN: 0817351345

ISBN 13: 9780817351342

More books from Raymond Arsenault

The Scent of Scandal: Greed, Betrayal, and the World's Most Beautiful Orchid

3.7/5 ( ratings)

The Sound of Freedom: Marian Anderson, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Concert That Awakened America

In Peace and Freedom: My Journey in Selma

4.3/5 ( ratings)

Arthur Ashe: A Life

4.1/5 ( ratings)

Freedom Riders:1961 and the Struggle for Racial Justice

4.2/5 ( ratings)

St. Petersburg And The Florida Dream, 1888-1950

4.2/5 ( ratings)

The Changing South of Gene Patterson: Journalism and Civil Rights, 1960-1968

4.5/5 ( ratings)

The Wild Ass of the Ozarks: Jeff Davis and the Social Bases of Southern Politics

4.2/5 ( ratings)

Rate this book!

Write a review?