"Episcopalians and Race examines the often ambivalent relationship between black communities and the predominantly white leadership of the Episcopal Church since the Civil War. Paying special attention to the 1950s and 60s, Gardiner Shattuck analyzes the impact of the civil rights movement on church life, especially in southern states.

He discusses the Church's lofty goals - exemplified by the Episcopal Society for Cultural and Racial Unity - and ignoble practices and attitudes, such as the failure to recognize the role of black clergy and laity within the denomination."--BOOK JACKET.