The Kkk In America Essay - 1984 Words

The Ku Klux Klans long history of violence grew out of the anger and hatred many white Southerners felt after the Civil War. Blacks, having won the struggle for freedom from slavery, were now faced with a new struggle against widespread racism and the terrorism of the Ku Klux Klan. Despite what many might like to think, the KKK is still active today. The bare facts about the birth of the Ku Klux Klan and its revival half a century later are baffling to most people today. Little more than a year after it was founded, the secret society moved across the South, bringing a reign of violence that lasted three or four years. Then, as rapidly as it had spread, the Klan faded away. After World War I a new version of the Klan surfaced. Then,†¦show more content†¦The origin of the Ku Klux Klan was a secret for years, although there were many thoughts and theories to explain its beginnings. One idea was that the Ku Klux Klan was originally a secret order of Chinese drug smugglers. Anot her claimed it was begun by Confederate prisoners during the war. The most ridiculous theory was about an ancient Jewish document referring to the Hebrews enslaved by Egyptian pharaohs. In fact, the beginning of the KKK wasn’t as complex as many made it seem. It was just six young Confederate veterans in a small town with nothing better to do than to gather around a fireplace one December evening in 1865 and form a social club. The place was Pulaski, Tennessee, near Alabama’s northern border. When they got together a week later, the six young men were full of ideas for their new club. It would be secret, to make it more amusing, and the titles for the officers were to have names as crazy-sounding as possible, partly for the fun of it and partly to avoid any military or political involvement. The head of the group was called the Grand Cyclops. His assistant was the Grand Magi, there was a Grand Turk to greet all candidates, a Grand Scribe to act as secretary, Night Hawk s for messengers and a Lictor to be the guard. The members, when the six young men found people to join, would be called Ghouls. The founders were determined to come up with something mysterious. The GreekShow MoreRelatedRed Scare, KKK, Civil War Brought Fear to America1717 Words   |  7 Pagesof the unknown.†- H. P. Lovecraft. In the 1900’s, fear drove America. The Red Scare was a time when Americans were afraid of the threat of Communism. In the Sacco and Vanzetti case, two Italian anarchists were convicted of crimes which they were clearly innocent of. The Ku Klux Klan attempted to keep African-Americans out of positions of power and for brief time was successful. The Red Scare, Sacco Vanzetti case and the rise of the KKK all are example of how American’s fear the unknown and what weRead MoreThe Klux Klan And Kkk Klan1122 Words   |  5 PagesStates. One of the oldest hate group is The Ku Klux Klan (KKK). In 1970 the Ku Klos Knights of the Ku Klux Klan wa s formed. There are several Klan’s throughout The United States. One in particular operates in Missouri. There are many Klan’s throughout The United States. Most of these groups operate in the south. There is also mission and message these groups try to convey. Although the KKK used to be known for their violence, the KKK KKK is knowing for condemning violence. The group now usuallyRead MoreThe Ku Klux Klan, also known as the Klan or the KKK, originated in Pulaski, Tennessee, in 1865.600 Words   |  3 PagesKlan, also known as the Klan or the KKK, originated in Pulaski, Tennessee, in 1865. The first KKK was formed by six Civil war veterans, with the purpose to restore power to the plantation owners. The people that the KKK was against was African Americans and republicans. The second KKK was founded in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1921. This KKK lasted much longer and had millions of members, partially due to their organization with finances and members. The third KKK was founded as a civil rights movementRead MoreThe Rise and Fall of the Ku Klux Klan1136 Words   |  5 Pagesagainst free blacks and their white supporters. The KKK had a wide array of uneducated people because their main incentive was to recruit young, homeless, and mindless children to follow in their footsteps and become a member of the KKK. In many instances Klan members were taught the KKK did not believe that blacks were capable of the necessary decision making in life, they thought that Blacks were sub-human(Student Handbook 316). The KKK had many wrong beliefs, like that Blacks were notRead MoreKu Klux Klan714 Words   |  3 Pagessecret organization throughout America that has been active for several years and is responsible for more than 5,000 deaths. This organization bears the name of the KKK or Ku Klux Klan. Rosa Parks added to the topic of the KKK by saying, â€Å"It was just a matter of survival†¦ of existing from one day to the next. I remember going to sleep as a girl and hearing the Ku Klux Klan ride at night and hearing a lynching and being afraid the house would burn down† (Parks). The KKK, scattered through the US, hasRead MoreThe Rise and Fall of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1920 Essay1558 Words   |  7 Pages The Ku Klux Klan had risen in the 1920s due to political encouragement through the movie, The Birth of a Nation, Prohibition, and political leaders. The Birth of A Nation by David W. Griffith had glorified the Ku Klux Klan. The movie portrays the KKK in such a way as Morrison exp lainsâ€Å"†¦The Rebirth of a Nation, in dubious tribune to D.W Griffith’s hugely successful 1915 film. In the film, as in Clansman, the novel on which it is based, the need to protect white women from the sexual threat posedRead MoreThe Kkk : History And The Aftermath Of Their Actions1715 Words   |  7 PagesThe â€Å"KKK† History and the Aftermath of Their Actions There are many people who think of the KKK as a terrorist group but it did not start that way initially. The Klan started as a social group and turned into one of the nations largest and most feared terrorist groups our country has ever seen. Whereas they were just preserving the old gospel belief of racial separation, once slavery was abolished the KKK was able to inflict the pain, torture and murder on any former slave they deemed, given thatRead MoreAfrican Americans in the Reconstruction Era1518 Words   |  7 PagesBaggers and Scalawags, the Republican Party gained almost complete control over the South. Throughout this time, the ranking of freedman was significantly increased, and by 1868; many state legislatures had African American delegates. All of America, as well as the South, had to be rebuilt, and, despite the Souths hostile resistance, African-Americans were slowly and gradually becoming part of this nation. The long-awaited citizenship for Blacks was confirmed in 1868, by the 14th AmendmentRead MoreThe Ku Klux Klan Of The 1920s A Mainstream Organization?934 Words   |  4 PagesBrionna Palmer Professor Rodabaugk History 1051-001 October 4, 2017 Was the Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s a Mainstream Organization? YES: Shawn Lay rejects the view of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) as a radical fringe group comprised of marginal men and instead characterizes the KKK of the 1920s as a mainstream, grassroots organization that promotes traditional values of law, order, and social morality that appealed to Americans across the nation. NO: Thomas Pegram, on the other hand, recognizes the KlansmenRead MoreThe Civil War And Reconstruction1448 Words   |  6 PagesWar and Reconstruction was the Ku Klux Klan. The KKK was founded in 1866, and extended into almost every southern state by 1870. The organization became a vehicle for white southern citizens to deny Republican Party’s Reconstruction-era policies whose ideas, that tried establishing political and economic equality for African Americans. The KKK flourished in some regions in the South where, African Americans were a minority of the population. The KKK also targeted any individual or organization that