Massive Resistance is a compelling account of the white segregationist opposition to the US civil rights movement from the late 1940s to the mid-1960s. It provides vivid insights into what sparked the confrontations in US society during the run-up to the major civil rights laws that transformed America's social and political landscape. George Lewis has written a comprehensive overview of this controversial era of US history using his own research and interpretation, as well as new work by other experts in the field. The book concentrates on the political complexities of a campaign rooted in the white South that was intent on forestalling the march to racial equality. Themes covered include a white supremacist reading of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence; regional arguments for a 'distinctive' South; social and political doctrines of racial separatism as the core of southern identity; political oppression for the maintenance of white power; the role of physical intimidation and economic arguments used by the Ku Klux Klan. Lewis's authoritative work on southern segregationists and what drove them to oppose civil rights reform is a valuable resource for students of twentieth century American history.

This is the first textbook analysis of white responses to the civil rights movement for a generation Incorporates and interprets the latest generation of scholarship in the area, combined with author's own original research.

About the Author
Dr George Lewis is Reader in American History at the University of Leicester, UK

Reviews
George Lewis unravels the complex and intricate webs that were part and parcel of what is referred to as massive resistance. His scholarly approach, impressive organization of the material, and the overally quality and clarity of his narrative collectively contribute to Massive Resistance being an important contribution to the field of American studies... (An) important and much needed contribution to historical scholarship on an important and perhaps neglected side of the civil rights era. If one were to choose one book on this particular subject, I believe this volume should be the one. Joseph Michael Gratale, European Association of American Studies "In only 187 pages of text, George Lewis's excellent study of massive resistance synthesizes recent historiography in a respectful, nuanced, and tightly argued corrective to Numan V. Bartley's monumental The Rise of Massive Resistance: Race and Politics in the South during the 1950's (1969) that also draws on primary research." Mark Newman, The Journal of American History "George Lewis has delivered an excellent new history of white opposition to the civil rights movement ... Massive Resistance is a versatile book: specialists will find the arguments persuasive, and the text is lively enough for introductory history students." Ann Ziker, Journal of Southern History



Book Information
ISBN 9780340900222
Author Dr. George Lewis
Format Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Hodder Arnold
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Weight(grams) 384g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 156mm * 14mm