Michael klarman backlash thesis

Answer 1

Brown might have had indirect effects = thrusting the desegregation issue onto the national agenda, searing the conscience of previously indifferent northern whites...or inspiring (especially southern) blacks to challenge the racial status quo

- Michael J. Klarman in "How Brown Changed Race Relations: The Backlash Thesis

Klarman's backlash thesis argues that racial backlash that followed the Brown v. Board of Education decision was pivotal in bringing the issue of the cruel of excesses of Jim Crow into the public eye especially in in the north.

The Brown decision had a very limited impact on the desegregation of public schools in the south, however it had an indirect impact in causing the a surge of protests. These protests, most notably in Birmingham and Selma (Alabama) were met with heavy and violent repression by southern authorities. However this backlash was heavily publicised and televised which brought the issue of Jim Crow to the nation's attention.

Moreover Klarman argues this backlash helped trigger the creation of civil rights legislation by the Kennedy and Johnson administrations.

Answer 2

Michael Klarman's "Backlash Thesis" suggests that significant social progress, particularly in relation to civil rights, often spurs a conservative reaction or backlash. This backlash is typically a response from those who feel threatened by the progress and seek to resist or reverse it, leading to political and legal challenges to the advancements made. Klarman argues that understanding and acknowledging this pattern is crucial in predicting and addressing obstacles to continued social change.