Latest Reading

Jim Dent’s The Undefeated is the story of Oklahoma Sooner football in the 1950s, which included a record forty-seven game winning streak that will likely never be matched. The legendary coach Bud Wilkinson presided over one of the greatest sports dynasties in American history. Of course, the tales of corruption make modern college football seem like child’s play, even compared to the corruption during the 1980s at institutions like Barry Switzer’s Oklahoma or Jimmy Johnson’s Miami.

The book is written well enough for what it is. The degree of interest will largely depend on how much the reader cares about Sooner football or college football in general. For the record, college football is my second favorite spectator sport behind baseball. For those interested, The Undefeated is definitely worth the few hours of time it takes to consume.

A funny anecdote in the book: Oklahoma University president George Cross was asking the state senate for extra funds for the university. When asked why he needed them, he replied, “I would like to build a university the football team can be proud of.”

MLK’s Final Speech

King’s last speech was “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop.” The last words of the speech are haunting, perhaps some of the most poignant rhetoric in American history. He ended

“Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.”

I wonder if, in the aftermath of Obama’s election, King would say we are in the promised land. His focus had shifted before he died to the Poor People’s Campaign, which embraced people of all races and sought to radically restructure society. Somehow I think he would be happy at the progress. But I think he would recognize we still have further to go.

End of the Semester

I just turned in the take home final exam and the semester is officially over for me, except for getting my final grade. I enjoyed learning about the Civil Rights Movement as it is one of the most important eras of American history. It gives us a sense of hope, telling us that, with enough concentrated effort, wrongs can be righted. The only era of history more compelling to me is the Cold War, particularly the protests that brought entire countries and doctrines to their knees.

You could study the Civil Rights Movement your whole life and still have much to learn. The movement was so diverse that it refuses to be put in a tidy package. But I feel confident enough to teach it to undergraduates as part of a larger part of American history. And I feel confident enough that I have the grasp of the movement that any scholar of the American twentieth century should have. And I suppose that is the point.