The Myth of Colorblind Christians: Evangelicals and White Supremacy in the Civil Rights Era

by Jesse Curtis

In the summer of 1963, while the National Council of Churches threw its support behind the civil rights bill, evangelicalism’s leading light sounded the alarm about the dangers of civil rights activism. In August, Billy Graham embarked on a month-long crusade in Los Angeles. On the evening of August 27, as he looked out on a crowd of 37,000 people, he spoke about the racial crisis gripping the nation. It was the day before the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. In contrast to later nostalgic memories of a peaceful march, dread stalked the nation’s capital. Many white Americans expected violence. One white evangelical observer predicted that there would “possibly be the worst race riot in the history of the country in our capital.” Amid this climate of anxious anticipation, Graham’s words were bound to resonate. His voice boomed across the stadium: “I am convinced that some extremists are going too far too fast,” he declared. “Forced integration will never work.” The racial crisis would “not be settled in the streets but it could be settled in the hearts of man.”75 At this decisive inflection point, Graham could have embraced civil rights activists and linked his colorblind gospel with the demands coming from the streets. Instead, he borrowed language from segregationists and framed the gospel as an alternative to black aspirations for freedom.