Foreword

Excerpt from “Myth and the Man”
Written by George Wallace, Jr.

In reflecting on my journey of being the namesake of one of the most controversial political figures of the 20^th century, and understanding how dramatic and traumatic the experiences were, and how they affected my immediate family, I have always believed our experiences were unlike those of any other family in our nation’s history. What we endured, we endured under the watchful eye of the public. This added pressure in many respects, took a toll on my sisters and me, and has manifested itself in various ways in our lives. The writings contained here will reveal for the first time from a family perspective, the real George Wallace, not the myth that has grown up around his legend.

The stories you will read take a close look at our family and what it was like inside our home, while there was a storm raging just outside. We had become the focal point of threats and found ourselves in the middle of the Civil Rights controversy by virtue of being the family of George C. Wallace. He had become the very embodiment of resistance to the social changes on the horizon, and he felt persecuted and saddened by the misconceptions of him by so many. He understood, because of his “Segregation Forever” speech and the “Stand in the Schoolhouse Door,” that the issue of race, while bringing him to power, would prove to be the burden he would have to bear, until eventually through his suffering, his own sense of our common humanity was revealed to all. The bargain he had made on the issue of “Segregation” gave to him the power he had always sought, but this “Faustian” bargain also brought him many regrets.

At the moment my father hit the pavement after being shot, and as blood flowed from his body, a bond was formed between him and the civil rights workers who had shed their own blood. Their sense of struggle and pain was now shared and his sensitivity and empathy for those he had been accused of harming, either by words he had spoken or actions he had taken, was heightened and strengthened.

I have sought to capture the man George Wallace and the talents that made him such a folk hero to those who loved him, and came to love him. His political talents were unrivaled, and an examination of how he used those talents makes it clear why he was so successful as a politician. At the same time, these talents are what took him away from mother and our family, and caused tension between my mother and father that brought them to the brink of divorce.

The 1958 and 1962 races for Governor and the dynamics that were present in those races are examined. His 1962 race for Governor, at which time he had become the hard-liner on the issue of segregation, was successful and he was to shortly thereafter, “toss the gauntlet.” This decision was based upon pure, political pragmatism driven by a burning ambition to be elected Governor of Alabama. He became the embodiment of fighting the “War Between the States,” once again one-hundred years later.

Mother’s love affair with the people of Alabama was genuine, endearing and enduring. She had been a simple country girl, a tomboy of sorts working in a dime store, when she met a dark and mysterious young man, by the name of George Wallace. Their respective personalities and demeanor complimented each other and appealed to the folks. They were a great team, but she in her own right became a confident speaker, with an ease about herself and gentle spirit that lifted the spirits of her people. Her death at forty-one after waging such a courageous battle with cancer was an inspiration for the Lurleen B. Wallace Cancer Institute, at U.A.B.

His being labeled the “Grandfather” of the modern conservative movement in our country, even prior to Ronald Reagan was a source of great pride to him. He was simply taking the value system which had been instilled in him from the people from whence he came, and the people of the country responded to it. In many ways, his national popularity became a certain vindication of sorts given the perception of southerners perpetuated by many of the national media, even today.

A look at my father’s life teaches us many things. For all of his actions as a man and as a politician, he would have to make choices and live with the consequences of those choices. His ambitions propelled him to great heights and those same ambitions took him to the depths of misery. Ultimately, it was his faith that became his constant companion, and gave him the strength to carry on. When he was faced with the harsh reality of being confined to a wheelchair and in constant pain for the rest of his life, he would have to make a choice. When he was faced with the thought of Arthur Bremer, the man who sought to take his life, he would have to make a choice. He felt that he was broken physically, so in order to survive he must not let himself be broken mentally and spiritually. He made the choice to forgive, and through prayer and a devout spirit he found peace.

The “Myth and the Man” reveals for the first time the Man behind the Myth.