Populism and the Wizard of Oz

Populism had incredible appeal in the southern states where poverty and hatred seemed the greatest. The people felt trapped between the republican bankers of the North and the new1y freed slaves, against whom they had to compete in the open labor market. Populist politicians found that they could do relatively little to control the bankers and the wealthy privileged, but in the newly freed slaves they found a scapegoat for all their problems and complaints. They also promoted a totally new system of racial segregation. Even though they lost all national elections, the Populists managed to…