Rating: 
Summary: Important introduction to an important topic
Review: One of the central problems in American history is that of race relations, and one of the central problems of race relations in America has been that of segregation. Woodward intends for this book to be an overview of the rise and fall of de jure segregation in the American South, and, for the most part, he succeeds admirably. There is much to commend this book and its author for. Woodward debunks the notion, especially popular among the defenders of segregation during the Civil Rights era, that segregation had been part of the Southern way of life for time immemorial; instead, he convincingly argues, a considerable amount of integration existed from before the Civil War up until the turn of the Twentieth Century. He provides a nuanced analysis of the course of white Southern resistance to desegregation decisions by the Supreme Court -- it was not monolithic, nor was it immediately virulent; rather, "massive resistance" developed over the course of several years, not reaching its peak until the early 1960s. Finally, his analysis of the internal tensions in the Civil Rights movement between the integrationists and the nationalists and between the black middle class and the mass of black poor, while frustratingly incomplete, nevertheless rings true. This is a short book, and the author's literary style makes it seem even shorter. His prose is engaging and precise, and this book is a quick read in spite of the depth and importance of the ideas that it contains. The only criticisms that I can offer are fairly minor. Foremost is the lack of citations in the book. This is understandable, especially in light of the fact that the book originated as a series of lectures given at the University of Virginia in 1954. Still, Woodward could have included footnotes if he had wanted to when he was assembling the book for publication. Second is the virtual lack of analysis for why the Jim Crow laws seemed attractive to white Southerners in the first place, especially in light of the absence of a segregationist heritage in the South. Neither of these two comlaints should detract from the book very much. It is a fine introduction to the Jim Crow era, and it ought to be required reading for any serious student of American history.
Rating:
Summary: Important introduction to an important topic
Review: One of the central problems in American history is that of race relations, and one of the central problems of race relations in America has been that of segregation. Woodward intends for this book to be an overview of the rise and fall of de jure segregation in the American South, and, for the most part, he succeeds admirably. There is much to commend this book and its author for. Woodward debunks the notion, especially popular among the defenders of segregation during the Civil Rights era, that segregation had been part of the Southern way of life for time immemorial; instead, he convincingly argues, a considerable amount of integration existed from before the Civil War up until the turn of the Twentieth Century. He provides a nuanced analysis of the course of white Southern resistance to desegregation decisions by the Supreme Court -- it was not monolithic, nor was it immediately virulent; rather, "massive resistance" developed over the course of several years, not reaching its peak until the early 1960s. Finally, his analysis of the internal tensions in the Civil Rights movement between the integrationists and the nationalists and between the black middle class and the mass of black poor, while frustratingly incomplete, nevertheless rings true. This is a short book, and the author's literary style makes it seem even shorter. His prose is engaging and precise, and this book is a quick read in spite of the depth and importance of the ideas that it contains. The only criticisms that I can offer are fairly minor. Foremost is the lack of citations in the book. This is understandable, especially in light of the fact that the book originated as a series of lectures given at the University of Virginia in 1954. Still, Woodward could have included footnotes if he had wanted to when he was assembling the book for publication. Second is the virtual lack of analysis for why the Jim Crow laws seemed attractive to white Southerners in the first place, especially in light of the absence of a segregationist heritage in the South. Neither of these two comlaints should detract from the book very much. It is a fine introduction to the Jim Crow era, and it ought to be required reading for any serious student of American history.
Rating: 
Summary: Race in America
Review: The most fascinating thing about this book is not just the particular events in history, or the misconceptions and myths that Woodward discusses, but rather how truly complex the issue of race is in America. Since emancipation, there has always been a struggle between and among whites and blacks to figure out how to understand each other and themselves, and how to occupy the same place. This history is indeed strange, and to have an idea of why race is still such an issue today, it helps to know how racism, segregation, and civil rights changed over time. Woodward's book cautions us against taking simplified views that the South was always racist, and the North was not, and he begins by describing various accounts of life in the South right after the Civil War. According to Woodward, the venomous prejudice that sustained the Jim Crow laws decades later wasn't foreseeable at that time. Much of his explanation of the racist sentiment that so desired segregation is framed in the context of politics, and he tries to analyze many of the events he discusses in terms of political and economic pressures, as well as in terms of reactions to preceding actions. If the Civil War is to be seen as a war for racial equality (and there are many other ways of seeing it), then it can easily be argued that it continues to this day. It is often most comforting to think of the wiping out of Native Americans, and then the enslavement of Africans as hideous scars that America carries in the past, while believing that America today is a different, tolerant place. But Jim Crow laws were a product of the twentieth century, and the racial tensions still exist in a very real way. Woodward's book, first published in 1955, and last revised in 1974, is still immensely relevant today, and reading it can only enhance your sense of American history.
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