Keeping the Faith

by Flynt, Wayne

• ISBN13: 9780817317546
• ISBN10: 0817317546
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2011-09-02
• Publisher: Univ of Alabama Pr

Summary

Wayne Flynt has spent his adult life as an academic teaching in Alabama, at Samford and Auburn, and through his works on poor whites and Southern Baptists in our state as well as his many contributions to the general history of Alabama has become widely recognized as the premier scholar on the subject. He has also taught and served widely as a public historian; he has traveled the state and the South lecturing and teaching both lay and academic groups, calling on his detailed knowledge of both the history and power structure in Alabama to state uncomfortable truths where he finds them, whether in academic institutions which fall short of their stated missions, in government and industry leaders who seek and hold power by playing to the fears and prejudices of the public, and religious groups who evade the clear call of their foundations and instead seek financial and emotional comfort in lip service only. In doing so he has not only energized those who think the State of Alabama can do and must do better, he has earned the enmity of those who prosper, profit, and prevaricate for their own selfish ends. Nevertheless Professor Flynt is one of the very few scholars who have been able to deploy a lifetime of learning and reflection to attain a position that can be fairly termed the conscience of his community. He tells the story of his life and his courageous battles against an indifferent or hostile power structure with modesty but always with honesty. In doing so he tells us the story of how Alabama institutions really are manipulated, and why we should care. Among the many acts of public and professional service of Dr. Flynt, he served on the Faculty Editorial Board of the UAP as the representative of Auburn University from its reorganization in 1979 through 2005, the longest term of any member. Through his own works and the counsel and recommendations he has provided both the Press staff and younger scholars who turn to him for advice, he has played a leading role in the Press's extensive list of works on the history and culture of this state.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. ix
Ancestors, Real and Imagined	p. 1
An Alabama Childhood	p. 36
Discoveries and Awakenings	p. 60
Going Home	p. 83
Sweet Auburn, Stormiest Village of the Plain	p. 123
öSweet Auburn, Loveliest Village of the Plainö	p. 149
öWhere My Possessions Lieö: Writing about Ordinary People	p. 173
Democratizing Learning: University Outreach	p. 198
öLord Is the Maker of Them Allö: Black, White, and Poor in America	p. 209
Reforming American Education	p. 240
Principlaities and Powers: Battling for a New Constitution and a New Politics	p. 276
In the Eye of the Storm: Auburn University, 1989-2000	p. 290
öEver to Conquer, Never to Yieldö: Inside the Auburn Tiger, 1977-2005	p. 321
Valhalla on the Plains	p. 351
Ken's Barbeque and Other Third Places	p. 384
Acknowledgments	p. 399
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