There is a great debate abroad in the land about what to teach children about American history, and the persistence of racism within that history. The argument can be made that the metaphorical horse is well out of the barn, before we even reach for the door.
How could George Wallace have tried to block Black children from attending public schools without a deep-seated belief in white supremacy? But Wallace's Alabama and the South in general are not the main focus of Donald Yacovone's book Teaching White Supremacy: America's Democratic Ordeal and the Forging of Our National Identity.
Instead, the author points to the North--no slavery but plenty of bigots--as the major source of a general indoctrination into white supremacy.
The author shares his thinking in a chat with JPR's Vanessa Finney.