Civil Rights in the Whitest State: Two-Part Discussion

Join us on two Mondays in August for a facilitated discussion of Vermont’s perception of Civil Rights from 1945-1968.
As the first state to grant universal male suffrage, many of Vermont’s citizens considered themselves enlightened advocates of racial and political egalitarianism. Most considered the national Civil Rights Movement to be primarily an effort to desegregate the South. Vermonters’ reactions to the movement did not conform to their self-perceptions of racial enlightenment, and we’ll discuss a variety of primary sources grounded in historical context with a particular focus on the work of former Vermont Senator George D. Aiken.
The content and facilitation of this discussion as been adapted from Civil Rights in the Whitest State: Vermont’s Perception of Civil Rights, 1945-1968 by Stephen Wrinn. Excerpts from this book will be made available and referenced during the discussion.