Society in transition

Read the passage and answer the question below.

“To propose federal ‘intrusion’ into the sanctity of the state-local-private preserve of education was to stride boldly into a uniquely dangerous political [minefield] that pitted Democrat against Republican; liberal against conservative; Catholic against Protestant and Jew; federal power against states rights; white against black; and rich constituency against poor in mercurial cross-cutting alliances.”

-Source: Hugh Davis Graham, historian, The Uncertain Triumph: Federal Education Policy in the Kennedy and Johnson Years, 1984

The developments described in the excerpt best illustrate which of the following?

(Choice A)
the passage of a provision in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that increased opportunities for women
(Choice B)
the loss in public confidence in the federal government’s ability to solve social and economic problems
(Choice C)
the rise in debates over continued American intervention in the Vietnam War
(Choice D)
the growing clashes between political groups over the power of the federal government

AP®︎/College US History

Course: AP®︎/College US History > Unit 8

Problem