Dan T. Carter

1037 Scottsboro: A Tragedy of the American South, by Dan T. Carter (read 7 Dec 1969) (Bancroft Prize in 1969) I found this easy reading, and difficult to lay down. I am also surprised how fuzzy my knowledge of the case actually was. On March 25, 1931, a train was searched at Paint Rock, Jackson County, Alabama, and nine young Negro men and two white prostitutes were removed therefrom. The women accused the Negroes of rape. The first hurried trial at Scottsboro, Ala., resulted in the death penalty for all nine. The U.S. Supreme Court,in an opinion by Justice Sutherland, reversed, because of mob influence, in Powell v. Alabama, 287 U.S. 45 (1932). Then Liebowitz got into the case and numerous trials followed--all of which ran into the most blind Alabama prejudice as far as jurors were concerned. It is simply fantastic that jurors could be so prejudiced. Apparently these boys had nothing at all to do with the girls! The awful miscarriages of justice resulted in all the nine being in prison till 1937, and five being in prison longer--one till June 9, 1950. The book, written by a South Carolinian and published by Louisiana State University Press, is objective--and thus terrifying. Nine dumb Negroes, who did nothing to deserve it, ruined by stupid prejudice. A fantastic story.… (más)

3782. The Politics of Rage: George Wallace, the Origins of the New Conservatism, and the Transformation of American Politics, by Dan T. Carter (read 13 Aug 2003) I read this author's superlative book on the Scottsboro Boys on Dec 7, 1969, and knew this would be a good book. It was published in 1995, and is basically a biography of George Wallace, though it studies Wallace as a catalyst for political change. One stands disturbed anew at the support that Wallace gained despite his racism--or rather, because of his racist views. The book covers the years after Wallace was shot in 1972 rather skimpily, and treats his victories of 1974 and again in 1982 pretty cursorily. The book is well-footnoted, with a good bibliography. Not as good a book as his book on the Scottsboro Case, but a winner nonetheless.… (más)