This is Democracy: A deep dive into American history and civil rights
Samuel G. Freedman is an award-winning author, columnist, and professor, and this week, our esteemed guest and expert on one of the most critical actors in the American civil rights movement
Hubert Humphrey, oft-overlooked in mainstream history circles, for a simple reason that Freedman points out: “We’re very focused on who becomes president. And Hubert Humphrey was never able to fulfill his dream of being elected president. He loses to Richard Nixon very narrowly in 1968.”
Freedman goes on to elaborate on how Hubert Humphrey is often remembered negatively for his role as Lyndon Johnson’s vice president, supporting the Vietnam War and receiving the 1968 Democratic nomination without competing in primaries, amidst anti-war protests and police violence. While these critiques are valid, they overshadow his earlier political career, where, as mayor of Minneapolis, a senator, and initially as vice president, he played a crucial role in passing landmark civil rights legislation from 1964 to 1966. Even Humphrey acknowledged his Vietnam stance as the greatest mistake of his life.
Freedman’s recent biography project on Hubert Humphrey focuses on the former part of his life and career, from a small town to a crescendo moment in 1948 at the Democratic convention, where he gave a speech calling for civil rights. Some, like Jeremi, wonder how Humphrey became a proponent of civil rights as someone from a rural South Dakota background.
“Humphrey saw an example of political independent thinking in his father, and his father even would talk about meeting people across the bounds of difference, whether it was economic class, or race, or religion, and he would always tell young Hubert, [...] if you treat people like dogs, you shouldn’t be surprised if you get bitten.”
At the age of eleven, Humphrey met a black person for the first time, they were hired to lay a gravel road, the first one, just outside of town. This illustrates Humphrey's character, as he made a point to introduce himself to road workers, even though they were only around briefly—a testament to his nature. Additionally, his theological beliefs played a significant role in shaping who he was. His childhood connection to the Methodist social gospel movement, which emphasized creating the "Kingdom of God on Earth" through labor rights and racial and religious inclusivity, was pivotal. Early exposure to economic hardship during the 1920s Dakota depression led Humphrey to embrace New Deal policies before FDR's presidency. Later, his graduate studies at Louisiana State University introduced him to the realities of Jim Crow, further reinforcing his commitment to racial justice, which he carried back to Minneapolis, a city with its own racial challenges.
Zachary asks Dr. Freedman what made him so interested in Hubert Humphrey, and what was so fascinating about him as a political figure. Freedman didn't originally seek out a book on Hubert Humphrey. For years, he had been searching for a way to tell the story of post-WWII America, grappling with discrimination after defeating fascism. It wasn’t until a friend, Julian Zelizer, mentioned Humphrey’s 1948 civil rights speech that it clicked for him. The book could fill both a biographical gap about Humphrey and a historical gap in civil rights history. The 1940s, often overshadowed by the 1950s, saw significant activism led by figures like A. Philip Randolph and Walter White, and Humphrey’s role deserved recognition as well.
One of the huge contributions of this book is the intricate web that Freedman weaves between civil rights and the Jewish American experience, showing us that conventional wisdom doesn’t have it completely correct. An enlightening conversation, and an important book that provides us with additional lenses through which we can view history and modernity. I encourage you to take a listen or read the transcript.
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