Episode 18C - Big Jim Folsom: 10 Minute Profile

Although the majority of white Southerners were staunchly opposed to racial integration during the 1950 & 60s, there were a few mavericks who held a different point of view.  One of these was Big Jim Folsom, who successfully ran for Governor of Alabama in 1946, and again in 1954.  Gov. Folsom gained popularity by challenging the corruption and selfishness of the wealthy elites who dominated state politics.  He became known for building roads & schools, and he created old-age pensions & worker protection laws.  However, by the mid-50s, a different and uglier version of populism began sweeping the South, as white Southerners rallied against the push to give civil rights & voting rights to African-Americans.  Folsom's popularity suffered because he was relatively progressive on racial issues, & said he would not defy the federal courts if they mandated integration.  In 1962, Big Jim's racial tolerance, along with his many personal flaws & vices, caused him to lose the governor's race to George C. Wallace, a former Folsom supporter who had become a militant segregationist.  Gov. Wallace went on to gain national fame as a far-right demagogue, while Big Jim & his form of economic populism faded from the Southern political scene.

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