“The relationship of blacks to the Farmers Alliance and later to the southern Populist party was most paradoxical and complex. Gerald Gaither, with skill, understanding, and comprehension traces the various coalitions that attempted to unite the farmers, both black and white, against their elitist enemies, the Bourbon planter-businessmen Democrats. . . . This volume is a signal contribution to both Populism and southern history.”
—Florida Historical Quarterly
“A long-needed revision of the standard interpretation of Populist racial attitudes, Gerald S. Gaither’s study goes beyond popular Populist images, rhetoric, and stereotypes, finding a deep-seated enmity between poor southern blacks and whites that ‘easily undercut any sort of colorblind equalitarianism’ and forestalled the cooperation requisite for political success.”
—Atlanta Historical Journal
“An impressive work based on considerable research in sources not often studied by scholars.”
—CHOICE
