During the civil rights movement, Billy Graham said he was a preacher, not a prophet. And while he is remembered for speaking out against racism and segregation during his later revivals, some scholars argue that he gave white evangelicals a safe alternative to civil rights engagement.
The Rev. William E. Pannell of the Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, Calif., said Graham’s message of personal salvation helped give African-Americans the perception that whatever he “was talking about, whatever his value or legacy may be, it was outside of the best interests or perceived interests of the black community.”
Randal Jelks, African-American studies professor at the University of Kansas, said that although the Rev.