What was it like to live in the southern US in the 1960s?

I (27F) am an American who grew up in the north, but recently moved to the south for work. I make friends easily, but it’s been harder in this location because I don’t understand the people or the culture well. I am also appalled by something new every day, which makes it even harder. I think part of the issue for me is that, as a northerner, I don’t really have any family history in the US outside of my grandparents who immigrated from Europe in the 1950s, so I don’t have any generational trauma or family stories about how we as a people overcame struggles to become what we are today. <br><br>It feels like many people in the south still live as though it is the 1960s. Racism is so invasive and ingrained, and everyone around me seems to accept this as facts of life. I feel like I’m going crazy. The only reasonable people I’ve met yell about how upset they are with the south, so at least they’re relatable. <br><br>I understand that the south was the epicenter of slavery and then the civil war (and later the civil rights movement), and this history lives on today. I also understand that there is still a lot of generational trauma on both sides, but I don’t understand why southerners can’t seem to let go of the idea of states rights and tradition and instead allow progress and change. I feel like I am taking crazy pills.<br><br>I think what I’m looking for here is a deeper understanding of what life was like in the 1960s, and especially what it was like for those who fought for civil rights.