The treatment the Shoelses received seems to be a typical petty bourgeois reaction. Everyone who scratches the thin veneer of petty bourgeois respectablity and exposes their bigotry becomes their public enemy #1 (cf. Mark Twain's story _The man that corrupted Hadleyburg_). Another story that comes to mind is the German film _The Nasty Girl_ (based on a true story) of a female history student who digs out and exposes the nazi past of respectable citizens of a small german town. although she received international recognition and awards for her work, her house was fire bombed and she was literally driven out of town by 'respectable' citizens.
wojtek