The original Citizens Councils were not just accepted in Mississippi, they dominated state politics. By 1956, the Citizens Councils claimed a membership of 80,000 in the state and 250,000 in nine southern states. In 1960, the councils effectively elected Ross Barnett as governor and played a crucial role in George C. Wallace's victories in neighboring Alabama. Council members wore suits and ties, ran the local department stores and pharmacies, were elected mayor and were town doctors and dentists. Robert Patterson, a plantation manager in Indianola, was the driving force in the creation of the Citizens Councils.
Segregation represents the freedom to choose one's associates.
Americanism, State sovereignty and the survival of the white race. These two ideologies are now engaged in mortal conflict and only one can survive. The 30 years since have not been good to the Citizens Councils. Membership steadily declined, and, with it, power. By the late 1980s, the Citizens Councils were for all practical purposes defunct.