The desegregation of Clinton High School : then and now

This study examines the turmoil and violence surrounding the 1956 desegregation of Clinton High School in Clinton, Tennessee and the subsequent bombing of the school in 1958. I draw from sociological theories in political economy, status politics, and social movements. By examining historic events occurring in the U.S. as well as Clinton, Tennessee prior to 1956, the impact of social and economic conditions is established thus explaining the social movements and countermovements that arose. This study incorporates media reports as well as interviews conducted with fifteen individuals who had lived in the Clinton area during the time of the integration and witnessed the conflict. The countermovement against integration is explained as a result of racist ideology, perceived threats to economic and social status, as well as threats concerning the control of the socialization of white children. A new concept, the integration hypothesis, is proposed. This hypothesis combines status politics and political economic theory into one concept for the purpose of analyzing racially based social conflict as well as social movements and countermovements.