Yes, there are many different views in the South, of course I oversimplify by trying to indicate that views in rural Georgia differ from those held in other parts of the country. I can only speak from what I learned there which admittedly is superficial- only someone born there or with long exposure there can speak with authority. I have only met one Gullah (having a hard time outside of her area and of course one is never representative) but talked with a number of rural Blacks in central Georgia.
(Perhaps I should also say that educational money in rural Georgia is often mis-spent and wasted).

Another review of the book, "Supreme Discomfort," appeared in the New York Times Book Review, June 17, 2007, reviewed by Orlando Patterson, a professor of sociology at Harvard University.
In a note "Up Front," The Editors say Patterson thinks "extremism on both sides is flatly rejected. The great majority of black Americans, including the black poor, do not blame their problems on race, as the academic army of social scientists insists on telling them they should, and getting lifetime tenure for it." Patterson considers Thomas a "disappointment" because he lacks compassion and often is extremely "right-wing" in his views.
The review: http://www.nytimes.com/pages/books/review/index.html
Book Review
Put Supreme Discomfort in the Search box, check books. This will link one to the review "Thomas Agonistes," no. 2 on the list that appears.
The review is too long to insert here. The reviewers conclude: "...the book remains invaluable for any understanding of the court's most controversial figure. It persuasively makes the case that "the problem of color is a mantle" Thomas "yearns to shed, even as he clings to it." In doing so, it brilliantly illuminates not only Thomas but his turbulent times, the burden of race in 20th-century America, and one man's painful and unsettling struggle, along with his changing nation's, to be relieved of it."