re: Why did racism pick up speed in the 50's?

Everyone wants to simplify a very complex topic. Reconstruction was an ill-spirited means to punish the South. It spawned a lot of hate and animosity. Birth of a Nation should be watched and understood IMO. You cant start to make sense of something that you dont fully understand.

Its very easy to comprehend simple arguments like "white folks are racist" or "black folks are bad" etc. Its very hard to look back with a critical eye at humanity and see that mixing of race, nationality, and ethnicity ends badly 100% of the time. Black folks and native Hispanics are not inherently trouble, they are just incompatible in general with western culture. Non-Europeans that are compatible on an individual level self select to do so through immigration and assimilation.