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Oral History Interview with George Wallace, July 15, 1974. Interview A-0024. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007).
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  • Abstract
    Longstanding Alabama governor and former presidential candidate George Wallace discusses Alabama politics and racial issues in the American South. Wallace speaks at length about the alienation of politicians from a majority of Americans, and explains that his success is due to his effective reconnection with this frustrated constituency. Race plays a significant role in this interview, with Wallace defending his opposition to civil rights legislation by saying he did so on behalf of states' rights and asserting that Alabama has much to offer its African American citizens. He also offers a number of insights on the state of southern politics, the region's increasing penetration into the national political consciousness, and his rehabilitation as a politician after his 1968 presidential run and an assassination attempt.
    Excerpts
  • Wallace appeals to alienated Americans
  • Post-Civil War poverty in the South continues to affect the region
  • Wallace's views are rehabilitated in the 1970s
  • Policies that help blacks get Wallace black votes
  • Southern politics are not all about race
  • Opposition to march was only for logistical reasons
  • Shared sense of persecution motivates politics
  • Distaste for a strong judiciary
  • Various reflections on race, poverty, and compassion
  • There will still be an Alabama without a George Wallace
  • The death of regionalism
  • De facto segregation will continue
  • Civil rights would have come without legal interference
  • Black and white southerners get along just fine
  • Learn More
  • Finding aid to the Southern Oral History Program Collection
  • Database of all Southern Oral History Program Collection interviews
  • Resources for Educators
  • Changes in Southern Politics Learning Object
  • Subjects
  • Alabama--Politics and government
  • Democratic Party (Ala.)
  • Republican Party (Ala.)
  • Alabama--Race relations
  • Alabama--Economic conditions
  • Press and politics--Alabama
  • The Southern Oral History Program transcripts presented here on Documenting the American South undergo an editorial process to remove transcription errors. Texts may differ from the original transcripts held by the Southern Historical Collection.

    Funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services supported the electronic publication of this title.