The KKK was founded in the year 1866, a response to the emancipation of the slaves and the period following where they were granted civil, political, and economic rights. Fearful for the switch towards black supremacy, the KKK aimed to incite intimindtion and violence to shut down the momentum of Black leaders. Initially, the clubw as created as a social club in Pulaski, Tenessee. The the name is derived from the Greek work: "Kyklos" which means curcle. The confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest was the first leader of the KKK. Because of the growing violence and power of the KKK, Congress passed the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871. This shut down membership and make it a crime to be involved in any ulterior activities with the KKK. Indeed, the writ of habeas corpus was suspended to shut down the Klan violence. However, although founded in the 1860s, the peak of its power did not emerge until the 1920s. The revival of the KKK proved to have a terrible fate on non-white communities. By then, the membership was over 4 million people throughout the United States.
Protestant Nativists in 1915 revived the KKK, as their sentiment soared from novels that romanticized the South and the terrorist group. However this second surge was not only against Blacks, but targeted Roman Catholics, Jews, and foreign individuals. Fears of immigration into America and communism (Bolshevik/Menshevik issue in Europe) caused the KKK to connect with many people. The symbol of burning a cross was now prominently established. Many individuals incorrectly believe that the KKK violence occurred due to poor whites feeling inferior to many blacks rising on the social ladder. However, the organization had membership of small farmers, laborers, planters, lawyers, merchants, physicians, and even ministers. The areas where Klan activity was the most prominent had police officers either active within the Klan or refused to do anything to stop it. So, there were 2 prominent surges of the KKK. One, after the Civil War, and the second now after the rise of nativism. The 1930s Great Depression decreased membership, but it once again increased when the Civil Rights Movement incited this terror once again. Beating, shooting, and bombing of black and white activists was not uncommon in the 1960s.
Now, the KKK remains aligned with many of its values it exhibited in the post-Civil War and Nativist eras. Currently, the group is active in 25 states, predominantly the Deep South. "According to the Southern Poverty Law Chapter, active Klan chapters operate in Half the US states... includes places like New York, New Jersey, and Illinois"(mic.com).Now, Klan membership is around 5k-8k people, in different chapters throughout the US. They are no longer a single group, but fragmented.
The hatred, entitlement, bigotry, fascism, racism, sexism, homophobia etc. that these groups demonstrate physically and verbally is a horrible will forever be a blemish on the history of the United States.
Bibliography:
https://mic.com/articles/121628/7-facts-about-the-kkk-operating-in-america-today#.GUKMVgfDj
http://www.history.com/topics/ku-klux-klan
After reading in the textbook that the KKK was abolished in the late 19th century, I was confused why if that was true, the KKK still remains active today, and your article addressed my question very well. It's so saddening to hear that the bigotry and horrific acts of this terror group have been revived multiple times in history, especially in times of social progress such as the Civil Rights Movement and now, when the rights and freedoms of minorities has been on the rise. I remain confused why equality for everyone creates fear of a loss of power for whites that drives them to join such a cruel and disgusting organization. I was deeply saddened to hear from US News (https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/articles/2017-08-14/the-kkk-is-still-based-in-22-states-in-the-us-in-2017) that "The organized Ku Klux Klan movement saw a boost in its membership in 2017," and that "more than half of today's Klans formed in the last three years." Based on these facts, what you're saying is incredibly true and prominent right now; the KKK we see today has recently been revived by concerned bigots who fear the raising up of others means the lowering of themselves. I hope sometime soon we can find a way to completely destroy this awful organization so that it may never again cycle back in times of progress.
ReplyDeleteI found your insight about Klan membership declining in times of economic stress, like the Great Depression of the 1930s to be very interesting. It seems to me that once things started to favor the bigots that were drawn to the Klan they decided to reactivate their shameful mission of White Supremacy. Adding on to what Kenneth mentioned about the increase in membership in 2017, I think that this is a reflection of our current president and the majority of his supporters and the economic boost that has gradually happened after the Recession that the nation was recently in. I am deeply saddened by the facts presented in your post and completely agree with your statement about the KKK forever being a blemish on the history of the United States. However, I hope that as a nation practices like the KKK will forever be eradicated by using the KKK as an example of what to avoid in the future.
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ReplyDeleteI found it very interesting how you briefly mentioned what KKK meant in Greek -- I looked it up to find a bit more information and was surprised to find out that it was about a cycle of governments within a society. I also appreciated how you included just how many members of the KKK there were -- I had no idea that they once had 4 million members but are now between 5 to 8,000.
ReplyDeleteI found this article incredibly interesting:
https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/the-kkk-today/
It provides a very visual look into the present-day effects and influence of the KKK.
I think you did a really great job pointing out that the KKK didn't fully originate from economic stress. In fact, it was much more about racial inferiority. Thanks for clarifying that the idea that the KKK gained popularity due to Blacks moving up the social ladder is incorrect. Though this isn't exactly an excuse, it doesn't accurately portray the full extent of the racial bigotry that led to the origination of the KKK. This sort of "changing history" reminds me of the discussion we had in class about the difference between Northern and Southern Civil War textbooks. Though many try to ignore it, the Civil War was really fought over slavery. In this same way, the KKK originated due to the widespread belief that Blacks are inferior to Whites. Your article was really interesting and insightful! Thanks for sharing!
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