Boston Against Busing: Race, Class, and Ethnicity in the 1960s and 1970s - Couverture souple

Formisano, Ronald P.

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 0807842923 ISBN 13 : 9780807842928

Editeur : The University of North Carolina Press, 1991

Synopsis

In the 1970s the flashpoint of race relations for many white Americans was court-ordered busing to achieve school desegregation. Busing sparked protests in almost every city in which it was implemented, but perhaps the most volatile reaction occured in Boston, a city known for its high culture, superior education, and liberal populace. In no other city, north or south, did school desegregation prompt such intense and protracted protest.

In Boston Against Busing Ronald Formisano explores the sources of white opposition to school desegregation. He sees white resistance as an example of reactionary populism, a social movement mixing both populist and conservative elements. Racism was a key facor, Formisano argues, but racial prejudice alone cannot explain the movement. Vigilantism and terrorism were directed as much against moderate whites as against blacks, and class resentment, ethnic rivalries, and the defense of neighborhood turf played powerful roles in the protest.

Whereas previous accounts of Boston's opposition to busing have focused on the working-class neighborhoods of South Boston and Charlestown, Formisano examines a broader spectrum of resistance, especially in middle-class West Roxbury. Different neighborhoods had differing responses to the crisis, he says. He draws on letters from a cross section of Boston's citizens to the federal judge who presided over the case, W. Arthur Garrity, Jr., letters that detail the gamut of opinion among the opponents of court-ordered busing.

Formisano also points out the connections between the student and black activists of the 1960s and the Boston antibusers fo the 1970s. The Boston protesters, although hostile to the civil rights and student movements, often borrowed their tactics and even their slogans, singing "We Shall Overcome" and chanting "Hell, no, we won't go" as they marched, demonstrated, and often clashed with police.

Since the 1970s Boston schools have become even more segregated by race and class. In evaluating the ultimate failure of desegregation in Boston, Formisano explicitly identifies where public policy went wrong and why. In doing so, he provides an insightful account of one of the most significant grass-roots movements of the 1970s and offers a valuable contribution to understanding the ongoing social problem that school desegregation tried to address.

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur

Perhaps the most spectacular reaction to court-ordered busing in the 1970s occurred in Boston, where there was intense and protracted protest. Ron Formisano explores the sources of white opposition to school desegregation. Racism was a key factor, Formisano argues, but racial prejudice alone cannot explain the movement. Class resentment, ethnic rivalries, and the defense of neighborhood turf all played powerful roles in the protest. In a new epilogue, Formisano brings the story up to the present day, describing the end of desegregation orders in Boston and other cities. He also examines the nationwide trend toward the resegregation of schools, which he explains is the result of Supreme Court decisions, attacks on affirmative action, white flight, and other factors. He closes with a brief look at the few school districts that have attempted to base school assignment policies on class or economic status.

Biographie de l'auteur

Ronald P. Formisano is William T. Bryan Chair of American History at the University of Kentucky and author of The Transformation of Political Culture: Massachusetts Parties, 1780s-1840s

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: The University of North Carolina Press
• Date d'édition: 1991
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0807842923
• ISBN 13: 9780807842928
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 368
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible