Billy Graham , The Republican South, and Desegregation

Action Inst has a nice review of a book I want to read. The book is Billy Graham and the Rise of the Republican South.

See their post Review: Billy Graham and the Rise of the Republican South.

I think one factor in the whole race issue was that not only was Graham a Southerner he was a North Carolina Southerner. It is often overlooked but white politicos in that State early on decided to take a more progressive (for the South at that time) stance toward the desegregation issue and thus that State avoided a great deal of the trauma that their sister southerner Statesendured

I think this attitude is one that Graham had also. Plus there was the Presbyterian influence in his early life that has at times a view point toward Social Justice. In fact his wife never stopped being a Presbyterian which I am sure was the subject of some interesting household discussions.

The book also seems to touch on the fact that his politics was a tad more complex than many people realize.

Did Graham help Republicans rise in the South. Well perhaps he did in some ways. Mainly I think he made Republicans acceptable in the Jesus soaked we love FDR South. His friendship with Nixon no doubt played a key in that. Nixon it should be noted did a lot of the heavy lifting toward enforcing Civil Rights laws and so no doubt they had a mutual interest there.

Still I would like to see the arguments in the book. There were many factors in the GOP becoming a viable party in the South. Much having to do with a coup by the Dem liberals that took away the power from the Catholic City Bosses and their Evangelical Southern allies through the change of Convention delegate rules. So people after they were frozen out went elsewhere

I will try to give a review after I read it.