Once one of the wealthiest cities in America, Charleston, South
Carolina, established a society built on the racial hierarchies of
slavery and segregation. By the 1970s, the legal structures behind
these racial divisions had broken down and the wealth built upon
them faded. Like many southern cities, Charleston had to construct
a new public image. In this important book, Steve Estes chronicles
the rise and fall of black political empowerment and examines the
ways Charleston responded to the civil rights movement, embracing
some changes and resisting others.
Based on detailed archival research and more than fifty oral
history interviews,
Charleston in Black and White addresses
the complex roles played not only by race but also by politics,
labor relations, criminal justice, education, religion, tourism,
economics, and the military in shaping a modern southern city.
Despite the advances and opportunities that have come to the city
since the 1960s, Charleston (like much of the South) has not fully
reckoned with its troubled racial past, which still influences the
present and will continue to shape the future.