Poverty and Progress in the U.S. South since 1920

by Suzanne W. Jones

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Summary

This collection of essays on the American South examines a variety of responses to economic depression and poverty, recounting specific battles for civil, educational, and labor rights and exploring the challenges and alternatives to the corporate South in the post World War II agribusiness era. They assess how far the South has come in the last century, detailing what forces—from the Sears Roebuck catalog to the Civil Rights Movement—have been at work in its transformation and analyzing whether the region's reincarnation as the Sunbelt has lifted the burdens of Southern history. Labor strikes and demonstrations that have not always found a place in histories of the region are also detailed, as are the works of neglected writers whose representations of poverty deserve more critical attention. Information on key Southern figures, from Erskine Caldwell and James Agee to Albert Gore and Lyndon Johnson, and critical analysis of contemporary authors and filmmakers are provided.

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