andrew johnson and the Negro

Most persons raised in a segregated society are bound to a different perspective on racism. In this case, it is uniquely southern. According to the author, racism is both an idea and a set of beliefs about the world. The book focuses on Johnson’s racial attitudes and how these intrinsic forces affected a whole society. The author chose Johnson, because unlike the other aristocrats of that time Johnson was a plebeian “blue –collar worker” …

…the schooling associated with being lower class society. This book gives a great perception of Southern racial attitudes before and after the civil war. How Johnson’s racism, reflecting southern attitudes led to the demise of Reconstruction. This book offers much debate on both racism and reconstruction and would be worthwhile reading for and one interested in post civil war history. Andrew Johnson and the Negro By: David Warren Bowen The University of Tennessee Press, 1989