VUS.13a.6

Central Methodist Church letter, 11/16/62, to Alabama Governor George Wallace
(Alabama Department of Archives and History: "Using Primary Sources in the Classroom")

Mrs. Lucien Lentz, 11/17/62, to Alabama Governor George Wallace
(Alabama Department of Archives and History: "Using Primary Sources in the Classroom")

Tuskegee Institute Young Democrats Club letter, 10/-/63, to Alabama Governor George Wallace
(Alabama Department of Archives and History: "Using Primary Sources in the Classroom")

Northrop Laboratories letter, 05/23/65, to Alabama Governor George Wallace
(Alabama Department of Archives and History: "Using Primary Sources in the Classroom")

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Description

These grouped resources are letters sent to Governor George Wallace in the early 1960s from a variety of his constituents who were more or less troubled by his proactive segregationist stance in the face of the Supreme Court's decision for integrated education. These letters from white citizens and leaders of the business community, as well as from black church and school organizations, give students a chance to examine and discuss the various reasons why white citizens of Alabama might have preferred a less rigid approach to maintaining the status quo. These exhibits can also spark discussion of the tactics of "race-baiting" used by Wallace and other southern politicians throughout the Civil Rights Movement.

Teaching Tips

"Do Now" Suggestions

1. The teacher can provide students with all 4 letters (or excerpts from the letters depending on the students' reading level) and ask the students to place the letters in order from least tolerant to most tolerant of Governor Wallace's policies. After students have performed the task individually, the teacher can direct a discussion to come to a class agreement on the order. The class can also discuss the reasons why the 4 authors held their particular opinions.

Suggestions for Using this Resource as Part of a Lesson

1. (Before beginning this activity, students must be familiar with Governor Wallace's politics during the Civil Rights Movement.)The students can read each letter and in order to create "mind notes." Mind notes are graphic organizers, which are contained in the outline of a human head and require the students to fill in the organizer from the perspective of the letter writer. The teacher should ask students to address the letter writer's position in society, view on desegregation, and feelings about Governor Wallace within the organizer. If the students are at a lower reading level, they can be put in groups of 4 and complete the activity in a jigsaw (each reads a different letter, completes the mind notes for the letter, and shares his/her ideas with the rest of the group).