Its racism, not “principled conservatism”: The South, civil rights, GOP myths — and the roots of Fer

[DonViejo]

Its racism, not “principled conservatism”: The South, civil rights, GOP myths — and the roots of Ferguson

True GOP believers insist their small government beliefs have nothing to do with race. They're deluding themselves

PAUL ROSENBERG

As events in Ferguson continue to dominate public political attention, it’s worthwhile to take a step back and take a long hard look at how we got here. Why did the Democratic “Solid South” of old become such a stronghold of Republican strength? Lyndon Johnson, one of the smartest Southern politicians ever, had no doubt in his mind — “There goes the South for a generation,” he reportedly said, after signing the Civil Rights Act in 1964.

But the South was already halfway out the door at the time. Missouri, with a fair amount of Southern culture in its veins, is nonetheless a border state, home to Harry Truman, whose enunciation of a civil rights agenda, followed by integration of the armed forces and strong civil rights platform in 1948, led to the walkout of the Dixiecrats, which cost him a dramatic 20 percent drop in the share of the Southern vote from where it had been in 1944. That launched a transitional era that is strangely lost to most who ponder such things today.

This lack of longer historical memory is part of what helps to support a popular brand of revisionism that claims the South turned Republican because the people there embraced “principled” “small-government” conservatism. There are numerous problems with this explanation. First, if that’s why the South changed, then why didn’t the shift happen earlier? Second, if the change is explained by gradual economic development (as some such as Real Clear Politics senior analysis Sean Trende have argued), then why did Herbert Hoover do almost as well in 1928 as Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952? And why did the Democratic share of the Southern vote drop precipitously by 20 percent in 1948, as noted above, the year the Democrats put a civil rights plank in their platform, and the Dixiecrats walked out?

more
http://www.salon.com/2014/08/21/theyre_racists_not_principled_conservatives_the_south_civil_rights_gop_myths_and_the_roots_of_ferguson/

[Gothmog]

1. Racism is alive and doing well in the South

There are still sundown towns and appeals to the politics of racial division works in the south

[Wounded Bear]

2. "State's rights" has historically been...

the rallying cry to defend some of the most abhorrent activities and policies in human history, right here in the good ole USA.

[johnlucas]

5. I detail where "States' Rights" REALLY come from in this old post of mine

That States' Rights thing didn't start in 1948.
And that States' Rights thing stood for EXACTLY the same thing it did in 1948, 1964, & 2008.
It's about White Dominion. It's about the subjugation of the African peoples for profit.

The entire American political system was BUILT on racism.
You wanna see the details spelled out in an entertaining way?
Here's an old post of mine that does just that.

I call it A long story about the Southern Strategy.

The Civil War has been fought from the very beginnings of this country & is still being fought today.
This country has NEVER fully settled this issue of what it is going to be & what it is going to stand for.
No coincidences. No surprises.

The guises may change but the theme remains the same.

Small government? Well a State government is definitely smaller than a National government, isn't it.
Southern slaveowners & their descendants wanted to keep their Fiefdoms & have ALWAYS been resistant to a strong Central government putting them in check.

After you read my post you will REALLY understand what Democratic-Republican means.
Take it back to its Greek & Latin roots & you will see the South & their States' Rights...to own slaves.
John Lucas

[meow2u3]

3. "Principled conservatism" is a euphemism for legally sanctioned racism

Racism is one of the twisted principles of conservatism.

[blkmusclmachine]

4. Today's GOP is nothing less than the Ku Klux Klan minus the hooded robes and burning crosses.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

6. Didn't England and France offer to help the South during the Civil War?

With naval blockades and such, to defeat the North, but ONLY if they abolished slavery?

Am I right about this?