The Invisible Empire – Ku Klux Klan
By: Michael Woo, Justin Xia, Justin Lee, Jason Ngo, Matthew Zhang Wisotsky Pd1
Who are the Ku Klux Klan? We have heard stories of members of the Ku Klux Klan raiding African American homes at night and murdering blacks in their sleep. We have heard of how they captured innocent men and lynched them. The bodies found hanging from trees the next morning. What was their reason for targeting these innocent African Americans? Who were these violent night raiders? They were the notorious Ku Klux Klan, known for being a violent cult that targeted African Americans.
Formation of the KKK The Ku Klux Klan was formed in Pulaski, Tennessee in 1866 by former Confederate soldiers. In the following year, local sects of the Klan held a convention and coined their cult as the “Invisible Empire of the South.” Here they decided on a hierarchy which included “grand dragons”, “grand titans” and “grand cyclops” all led by a “Grand Wizard”. The goal of this cult was to restore white supremacy in the south and make sure blacks and Republicans (scalawags and carpetbaggers) were shunned and rejected by the community.
Formed from members of a slave patrol from the Civil War, the Ku Klux Klan was created in an attempt to oppress blacks and often used violence in order to enforce racial control. By the 1870’s every southern state had a branch of the Ku Klux Klan operating in it. The Ku Klux Klan distinguished themselves as the leader of the underground campaign against Republican leaders and voters in order to reverse the policies of Reconstruction in order to restore their sense of white supremacy. In order to achieve their goal they not only targeted blacks in their communities but black sympathizers and white Republicans.
Extent of Power In areas where the Klan’s operations were the strongest, they even had control of the local law enforcement. Most officers were either members of the Klan or were too afraid to speak against it. The few people that did speak against the Klan found it difficult to find other witnesses that would speak against the Klan. This gave the Klan complete power over the areas to terrorize blacks and Republican supporters. This gained the Klan more followers which gave the Klan larger areas to operate in. The Klan’s area of control extended from middle Tennessee to North and South Carolina. The Klan spread to every state in the South and had also taken of positions such as mayors, judges, and sheriffs. One of the most notorious areas that the Ku Klux Klan dominated was South Carolina. Here a group of five hundred clansmen attacked a county jail and lynched eight black prisoners.
What did they do and what impact did it have? At first, the Klan was known for its mischief. One of its favorite tactics was to wear a white sheet and a ghoulish mask and enter into a black home and demand water. They would pretend
to gulp it down but actually it would go down a rubber tube that flowed into a concealed bottle in his robe. They would continuously demand more and then exclaim that they hadn’t drank anything since he died on the battlefield at Shiloh, leaving the impression that they were ghosts from the Confederacy during the war. However, their mischief soon escalated into blatant violence. Armed members of the Ku Klux began riding into the countryside at night resulting in many bloody clashes with blacks. Their costumes and covered faces stirred fear and suspicion within blacks. Throughout the summer and fall of 1867, the Ku Klux drastically became more violent. With over a thousand members, the Klan was viewed with fear and alarm as people began to realize they
were getting out of control. It was crazy to think that anyone could have put on a sheet and a mask and ride into the night to commit assault, robbery, rape, arson, and/or murder. At one Nashville Klan meeting, leaders of the Klan decided that the Ku Klux Klan would be an organization of white supremacy. It was in the summer of 1867 that the Ku Klux
Klan became the sinister organization it is known to be. The familiar Ku Klux Klan tactics of delivering threats, raiding people at night, and casting fear over a community through the use of mass demonstrations originated from this period.
Opposition As stories of the Klan’s activities spread nationwide, people realized that they had to suppress the terrorist organization. One man, Tennessee Governor William G. Brownlow, attempted to plant spies within the Klan. However, the organization somehow knew about his efforts. The Ku Klux Klan had extended its power so thoroughly that it was difficult to oppose the Klan without having to face them directly.
Who joined the KKK?
This organization’s membership included anyone from small farmers to physicians and lawyers. These people were conservative whites who
were frustrated with political failures in the government. They seeked to defeat the Republican government and restore white supremacy.
Famous people who were part of the KKK
There were many famous people who were part of the KKK. They include many of the US presidents that we once voted for. Harry S. Truman was one of the greatest US presidents of all time. He was one of the founders of the UN. He managed to contain communism by the use of the Truman Doctrine. He passed the Marshall plan to rebuild Europe. He oversaw the Berlin Airlift and creation of NATO. He guided the American economy past the post
the war
recession. He started the racial integration of the military. He is part of the KKK. There were at least five other US presidents made a great impact of society
that had and
were part of the KKK. The list is not limited to US presidents. There were many famous people who were part of the KKK like Bibb Graves and Theodore G. Bilbo. At that time, being racist was the norm, so a majority of the non-black population were racist. People did not know any better and just followed the people around them and their beliefs blindly.
Religion and Beliefs of the KKK
The KKK believed in Christianity and were the extremists of it. Before modern times, the KKK was actually composed of white, Anglo-Saxon, and Christian Americans. They believed that their race was superior. They thought they had to create white power to defend America from all non-white and non-Christian races. They used the holy bible and protestant reverends to support their cause. “The Klansmen pins his faith to the Bible as the revealed will of GOD.” was one of the KKK member’s quotes. Many KKK members were ordained ministers. The
majority of the members belonged to the protestant church. Rituals were commonly used by the Klan for new members, cross burning, and wearing white robes. They feel that what they do is Jesus Christ and God’s will, because if it wasn’t god would have stopped them or punished them.
Legacy
Present day statistics have shown that the KKK shapes the voting patterns of the states they operate within. More specifically, KKK activity tends to shift the state’s votes toward a majority of republican votes. In addition, the KKK is presently conducting more of its activities with same intentions in the past but relatively in a much more passive manner. The KKK spreads their ideas through protests and through nonviolent ideology. The website for the KKK concerns this for the state that loving white heritage and being more united is more effective and worthwhile than engaging and waging a violent war against blacks. In addition to the KKK using passive aggressive strategies, many KKK members still linger in the high ranks of Southern states. It has only
been known recently that
Anonymous dropped a list of
KKK members with several
being governors and
representatives. Even though
the KKK uses passive
aggressive standards in the
conducting of their operations, occasional violent quarrels and altercations still remain prevalent when they clash with black people. This is due to increased unity in the black community along with the feeling of black pride. The KKK will forever remain a legit organization for their actions do not violate any constitutional rights and have given up their
barbaric tactics thus making them less effective than before.
Downfall
The KKK is not a stable organization as it has no real national leadership and its chapters were constantly appearing, disappearing, splitting up or merging with other groups which ultimately would confuse its members. However the big thing that affected its membership was when the Grand Dragon was put on trial for the murder of Madge Oberholtzer. After being convicted of second degree murder, the Grand Dragon released records that he had accumulated over the years which documented illegal activities of his colleagues. This leaked information drove Indiana into turmoil and ruining
the
lives of numerous lesser officials as well
as a
prominent judge being impeached. In Indiana alone, membership dropped
from
350,000 to a mere 15,000. Throughout
the
rest of the country, the KKK was shunned and looked down upon. Nowadays the KKK is also suffering from competition. People who wanted to join a cult or a hate movement back in the 1920s did not have a lot of choices. Today, there are countless options, enabling an extremist to find a group that speaks to him. The more extreme groups in the are the anti-Muslim, homophobic, and xenophobic sentiment, with less animosity toward African-Americans and Jews. However the Aryan Nations offers a heavy focus on Christian identity.
Bibliography: "11 People You Wouldn't Believe Used To Be In The KKK - ALLDAY." All Day. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://allday.com/post/1398-11-people-you-wouldnt-believe-used-to-be-inthe-kkk.
"Klu Klux Klan: A Hundred Years of Terror: Report from the Southern Poverty Law Center." WWW-VL History Central Catalogue. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://vlib.iue.it/history/USA/ERAS/klukluxklan.html. "Ku Klux Klan - Facts & Summary." HISTORY.com. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://www.history.com/topics/ku-klux-klan. "Ku Klux Klan in Decline: Why Did the KKK Lose So Many Chapters in 2010?" Slate Magazine. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2012/03/ku_klux_klan_in_decline_w hy_did_the_kkk_lose_so_many_chapters_in_2010_.html. "Ku Klux Klan in the Reconstruction Era." New Georgia Encyclopedia. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/ku-klux-klanreconstruction-era. "The Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan is Composed Entirely of White,Anglo-saxon, Christian American Citizens, Both Male a." Accessed January 12, 2016. http://home.wlu.edu/~lubint/touchstone/KKK-Fisher.htm. "Ku Klux Klan’s Lasting Legacy on the U.S. Political System." BrandeisNOW. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://www.brandeis.edu/now/2014/december/cunningham-kkk-impact.html. Riccio Jr., Charles A. "The Downfall of the Klan in the 1920s." Accessed January 12, 2016. http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/academic/klan-downfall.htm. "Rise of the Ku Klux Klan . U.S. Grant: Warrior . WGBH American Experience | PBS." American Experience. Accessed January 12, 2016. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/grant-kkk/.