President Joe Biden’s speech at Charleston’s Mother Emanuel AME Church in South Carolina, where he addressed the issue of white supremacy, should be recognized as one of the most important speeches in American history. The speech took place at the site where nine Black worshipers were murdered by a white supremacist in 2015. Biden spoke passionately about the poison of white supremacy that has plagued the nation throughout its history. As a historian who studies democracy in the American South, the author believes that Biden’s speech is significant and should not be forgotten.
The article highlights the historical roots of white supremacy in America. In 1820, U.S. Senator William Smith of South Carolina was the first to publicly reject the idea of equality, injecting white supremacy into public discourse. This ideology spread rapidly, supported by Southern propagandists who rewrote history to claim that the founders never believed in equality. Vigilante violence was used to silence those who spoke out against slavery. The Supreme Court’s 1857 decision in Dred Scott v. Sandford further extended racist ideology, stating that Black people had no rights that white men were bound to respect. Abraham Lincoln warned of the consequences of slavery and the division it created in the country.
The Civil War was meant to end slavery and the white supremacist ideology behind it, but the South invented the “Lost Cause” narrative, denying slavery’s role in the war. The emergence of the Ku Klux Klan and Jim Crow laws maintained racial segregation and disenfranchised Black voters until the 1960s. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms” speech in 1941 highlighted the fight against fascism and the importance of universal freedoms within a democracy. Biden’s speech at Mother Emanuel church draws parallels between the current political climate and the historical struggles against white supremacy, calling out Donald Trump’s “big lie” about the 2020 election and the resurrection of southern-style white nationalism.
Overall, the article emphasizes the significance of Biden’s speech and the ongoing battle against white supremacy in America. It highlights the historical roots of this ideology and the importance of addressing and eradicating it. Biden’s call for national introspection and action is seen as a crucial step in confronting the deep-seated racism and discrimination that has plagued the nation for centuries.
