A Question of Justice: New South Governors and Education, 1968-1976

Conclusion

Conclusion Nevertheless, ifit can be said there are many Souths, the fact remains that there is also one South. -w J. Cash, The Mind ifthe South No man's South was the same as another's. -Michael O'Brien, The Idea ifthe American South, 1920-1941 Perhaps Cash's quote applies, but in a different order, regarding New South governors and what they meant to their South. Albert Brewer, Reubin Askew, and John West proved that although there is one New South, there also exist many new political Souths. Each governor shared common beliefs, characteristics, goals for office, and, at times, similar results. Nevertheless, their individual experiences were quite different, and so was the political dynamic within each state. Without question they were alike in many ways. They held a common desire to move beyond the divisive politics ofrace. Young, well educated, and business oriented, each governor sought to expand political, economic, and educational opportunity for all the citizens of their states. Each saw education reform as a vital step in the South's economic and social reconciliation with the North following the turbulent civil rights era. They hoped that with improved educational opportunities came a better-educated workforce and perhaps an end to the fear and ignorance that had driven racism in the region for so long. Active in their local churches, often as deacons, Brewer, Askew, and West drew on a strong religious conviction. Each credits religion as a formative influence in his commitment to moderation and racial justice. In varying degrees they advocated centralization and streamlining of state government, businesslike management, state planning, fiscal conservatism , and delegation of decision making to experts. 1 These governors mark a watershed in southern politics, but their successes and failures came in no small part because of the recent political 170 Conclusion pasts of their states. In short, the state political dynamic dictated just how much of what they believed in became reality. Albert Brewer's Alabama was a far cry from Askew's Florida or West's South Carolina. Still mired in racial politics, the state did not allow moderation to develop without difficulty. Alabama did not elect a New South governor. It still had not by the end of the century. One was thrust upon it in 1968 following Lurleen Wallace's death. When examined against Askew's successes, Brewer's claim to New South status appears dubious. Still, Brewer's New South was as "new" as his state would allow. With the overbearing presence of archsegregationist George Wallace and no silent moderate majority to call on, Brewer found himself flanked by the state's segregationist past, through which he rose to office, and the need to move the state forward. When he lost in 1970 to Wallace, the state failed to appreciate his call for a more progressive course. While in office, Brewer represented a marked albeit brief change from the recent past. He ushered in a period of fiscal responsibility in government , refused to stand in any schoolhouse doors, and gave the state a chance to enter the new political South. Even though Brewer did not always appear to embrace school integration in the style of Askew, he marked a radical departure from the events ofthe turbulent Wallace years. Although Brewer legally appealed federal court rulings ordering integration , he did so in generally nonthreatening tones and never called for defiance ofthe final decisions ofthe courts, instead appealing for the adoption of school choice as a means of integration. His education program was one ofthe most progressive Alabama had ever witnessed. The Brewer reform program of 1969 was remarkably similar to the 1947 Minimum Foundation Program replaced by Askew in 1973. Nevertheless, for Alabama , it was no small step forward. Reubin Askew was a true southern liberal. His outspokenness on race and his advocacy of busing as the only effective means of desegregating schools proved that he was a different kind of southern politician. In addition , his populistic appeals for tax justice reminded many of past Populist governors. During Askew's fight to implement a corporate income tax, one of his corporate opponents called him "a nut with a Huey Long outlook ." Many questioned his sanity as he fought on the losing side of the busing amendment referendum. His ability to rebound from that crushing 1972 defeat on busing and make Florida a national leader in education just Conclusion 171 one year later indicates his broad...