Description
Book SynopsisThis is the first effort to provide a broad assessment of how well the Brown v. Board of Education decision that declared an end to segregated schools in the United States was implemented. Written by a distinguished group of historians, the twelve essays in this collection examine how African Americans and their supporters in twelve states - Arkansas, North Carolina, Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, Delaware, Missouri, Indiana, Nevada, and Wisconsin - dealt with the Court's mandate to desegregate "with all deliberate speed". The process followed many diverse paths.
Some of the common themes in these efforts were the importance of black activism, especially the crucial role played by the NAACP; entrenched white opposition to school integration, which wasn't just a southern state issue, as is shown in Delaware, Wisconsin, and Indiana; and the role of the federal government, a sometimes inconstant and sometimes reluctant source of support for implementing Brown.
Trade Review"An important and ambitious volume. . . . It contributes to a fuller understanding of the history and legacy of Brown and raises important questions about the broader thrust of the Civil Rights Movement and the nature of its achievements." —Patricia Sullivan, University of South Carolina, author of
Days of Hope: Race and Democracy in the New Deal Era"This book addresses a crucial question about twentieth century race relations and law. . . . An interesting collection of essays from an unexpected variety of places." —Robert J. Norrell, University of Tennessee, author of
The House I Live In: Race in the American Century
