Ardent segregationist Lester Maddox became governor of Georgia after earning the admiration of white voters by refusing to integrate his chicken restaurant.
Without much scrutiny or fanfare, Edward Blum has led the attack against federal minority voter protection laws and the use of race in college admissions.
As the “Queen” of gospel music, Mahalia Jackson sang two songs during the historic March on Washington. But her most famous line may have been a suggestion to Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Throughout US history, a ‘white backlash’ has worked to keep Black officeholders and their constituents out of power. Atlanta DA Fani Willis is just the latest.
Washington isn’t a state that typically comes to mind in discussions about student-led protests from the Civil Rights Movement. A Black history professor seeks to change that with a new book.
Hajar Yazdiha, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Conservatives have a long history of contorting the words of Martin Luther King Jr. to further political goals at odds with King’s vision of a colorblind society.
In the early 1960s, the McDonogh 19 school was the site of fierce opposition to racial integration. The building is now owned by one of the Black girls who first integrated the school.
Jane Elliott wanted her white students to experience what it was like for Black students. But instead of teaching about the root causes of racism, she engaged in cruelty and shame.
Poitier dazzled Hollywood with on-screen grace and bankability. His dignified roles and respectable values forever changed the image of Blacks, then mostly portrayed as maids, buffoons or criminals.
In principle, white Americans support efforts to end racism. But in practice, they have long been unwilling to support the fundamental change needed to do that. Will this year’s events change that?