Race, Reconstruction, and the Invention of “Negro Superstition,” 1862–1877

This article traces the postbellum development and dissemination of the notion of “negro superstition.” By the end of Reconstruction, many whites across the nation, both liberal and conservative, shared in the belief that credulity was the keystone of African American culture. The formulation of sup...

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Veröffentlicht in:Journal of American studies 2021-12, Vol.55 (5), p.1125-1152
1. Verfasser: COX, DAVID G.
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:This article traces the postbellum development and dissemination of the notion of “negro superstition.” By the end of Reconstruction, many whites across the nation, both liberal and conservative, shared in the belief that credulity was the keystone of African American culture. The formulation of superstition as innate racial trait served the conjoined causes of sectional reconciliation and white supremacy, eroding white support for black citizenship. As liberal estimations of black Christianity declined and conservative depictions of African American magical beliefs proliferated, “voodoo” gained traction as a potent imaginary, shorthand for racial atavism, unreason, and dangerous sexuality.
ISSN:0021-8758
1469-5154
DOI:10.1017/S0021875820001723