The political economy of education and propaganda in the U.S. South after the Civil War

Second, I hand-collected administrative data from Virginian schools that provides information on the student population and school finances. I also exploit a natural experiment whereby Virginian schools closed for at least a year after an unexpected veto of legislation that had different effects on schools across the state.<br><br>I find that the use of anti-Black propaganda played a significant role in weakening biracial political coalitions before important elections that set the stage for the legal disenfranchisement of Black voters.

I also find that elite support for higher school taxes was important to building cross-class coalitions of Whites after Reconstruction. Finally, I find that temporary school closures during Reconstruction had lasting effects on income and economic mobility in adulthood, particularly for those from low-income backgrounds. These findings provide insights into the importance of propaganda, universal public schools, and the role of cross-class coalitions in shaping the region’s political economy.<br><br>