Asked by sd
How did Nixon react to desegregation in the South?
Nixon led the desegregation campaign in Washington.
Nixon first resisted desegregation, but he ended up reducing the number of African Americans in all-black schools.
Nixon was strongly against desegregation and vetoed laws passed by Congress in favor of desegregation.
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The second statement is closest to correct.
Brief explanation:
- Nixon campaigned and governed with a strong posture against court‑ordered, forced busing and publicly opposed many federal remedies for school segregation (part of his broader “law-and-order” and Southern Strategy appeal). So he did not “lead a desegregation campaign” in Washington (statement 1 is wrong).
- He also did not veto major Congressional civil‑rights bills in the way statement 3 implies; he signed some civil‑rights measures and rarely used the veto to block desegregation legislation.
- In practice, however, Nixon’s presidency coincided with a wave of court orders (e.g., Alexander v. Holmes County, 1969) and Supreme Court rulings (e.g., Swann, 1971) that forced rapid desegregation in many Southern school districts. Even though Nixon resisted some remedies, the net result was a sharp rise in Black children attending formerly all‑white schools and a large decline in all‑Black schools during the early 1970s.
So: he initially resisted and criticized forced desegregation remedies, but court action and administrative implementation during his administration led to substantial integration.
Brief explanation:
- Nixon campaigned and governed with a strong posture against court‑ordered, forced busing and publicly opposed many federal remedies for school segregation (part of his broader “law-and-order” and Southern Strategy appeal). So he did not “lead a desegregation campaign” in Washington (statement 1 is wrong).
- He also did not veto major Congressional civil‑rights bills in the way statement 3 implies; he signed some civil‑rights measures and rarely used the veto to block desegregation legislation.
- In practice, however, Nixon’s presidency coincided with a wave of court orders (e.g., Alexander v. Holmes County, 1969) and Supreme Court rulings (e.g., Swann, 1971) that forced rapid desegregation in many Southern school districts. Even though Nixon resisted some remedies, the net result was a sharp rise in Black children attending formerly all‑white schools and a large decline in all‑Black schools during the early 1970s.
So: he initially resisted and criticized forced desegregation remedies, but court action and administrative implementation during his administration led to substantial integration.
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