1958: The White Citizens’ Council and Louisiana’s War Against Desegregation StepsbySteps247

Описание: In 1958, Louisiana was one of the epicenters of the South’s “massive resistance” — a coordinated political, economic, and social campaign to stop desegregation after the Supreme Court’s Brown v. Board of Education ruling. At the heart of that resistance was the White Citizens’ Council (WCC), a network of white supremacist organizations that operated as the “respectable” face of Jim Crow. Unlike the Klan, they wore suits instead of hoods — but their mission was the same: preserve segregation at all costs.
What we break down:
• 🏛️ The WCC as a statewide power structure
Citizens’ Councils were a loose network of segregationist groups across the South, created specifically to resist the Brown decision and maintain white supremacy.
• 🔥 Massive resistance in action
The WCC was part of the broader “massive resistance” movement — a term coined by Virginia Senator Harry F. Byrd Sr. — which sought to block school integration through legislation, intimidation, and political pressure.
• 💼 Economic intimidation as a weapon
According to historical research, Citizens’ Councils used economic pressure — firing people, denying loans, and blacklisting families — to punish Black activism and white support for integration.
• 🧠 The ‘Uptown KKK’
USA TODAY’s reporting describes the WCC as wielding economic and social power to obstruct desegregation, earning the nickname “Uptown KKK” because they avoided overt violence but enforced segregation through institutional power.
• 🗳️ Shaping Louisiana politics
By the late 1950s, Louisiana’s political elites — like those in Mississippi and Arkansas — strategically used WCC networks to mobilize white voters and block federal desegregation efforts.
• 📉 Impact on Black education
A decade after Brown, less than 3% of Black children in the South attended integrated schools — a direct result of WCC‑led resistance.
• 🔥 The bigger truth
The White Citizens’ Council wasn’t a fringe group. It was the institutional backbone of segregation in Louisiana — a polished, politically connected machine that fought to preserve white supremacy under the banner of “states’ rights.”
The WCC didn’t wear hoods.
They wore respectability — and weaponized it. #historyuncut #stepsbysteps247 #WhiteCitizensCouncil #MassiveResistance #JimCrowHistory #CivilRightsTruth #louisianahistory