Lyndon Johnson got what he wanted and the Great Society
was born. He was quoted as cynically remarking that the
Democrats would have the n***** vote from now on; and it
would appear he was correct. - It has been downhill all
the way since he started that mess. - It has been such
a horrible thing for black families; with abortions,
gangs, violence and the black man being relegated to the
curb while the government took over his place in the
family. - I can remember when the designation “Negro”
was one of respect and pride. - I’m white; but there are
some “whites” who think I’m not in their league. That’s
just life. - An older black man once stepped all the way
off the sidewalk to allow me to pass. I was about 21 yrs.
old and didn’t really know why he was doing that. I
certainly would not have expected him to do that.
Inside the White House
By Ronald Kessler
See the third complete paragraph from the bottom
https://books.google.com/books?id=lJz-yIZNE2sC&pg=PA33&img=1&zoom=3&hl=en&sig=ACfU3U0cgimQc7fDxPnZ5FAfBncdD7GzGA&w=575
Access the complete book
https://books.google.com/books?id=lJz-yIZNE2sC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA33#v=snippet&q=years%2033&f=false
Many Southern cities had a second downtown -- the one-time black business district. A hotel or two, a dozen or more retail stores, a professional building for the black doctors, dentists and lawyers, plus a printing plant for the black newspaper. This business district was populated and operated by a thriving black middle class.
With integration, most blacks preferred to shop at the "other downtown" -- where the stores offered a larger selection and, perhaps, a lower price. The "black business district'...went out of business.
Many folks lost their job, some lost their businesses...and their nest egg.
But I wonder...were blacks better off then than they are now? Black families were intact. There was no widespread dependency. There were jobs, a growing middle class and a number of black capitalists had emerged. The children were generally receiving a decent education.
But Brown v BOE, bussing, the Great Society and its War on Poverty changed all that. Jim Crow was dead and gone. Voting Rights were gained. Blacks could ride in the front of the bus but, in the process, the social structure of the black community was utterly destroyed.
In hindsight, the bargain doesn't appear to have been a particularly good one...