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Who Is KKK?: Ku Klux Klan

The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) is the oldest and most infamous American hate group. Formed in 1865 by Confederate veterans to intimidate freed Black Americans and supporters of equal rights, the KKK used violence, threats, and murder to enforce white supremacy. At its peak in the 1920s, the KKK had millions of members and political influence, but its power declined due to scandals and opposition. The KKK rose again during the civil rights movement of the 1960s, bombing and murdering many, but has continued losing members since being designated a hate group. Today there are over 700 active hate groups still operating in the United States.

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37 views4 pages

Who Is KKK?: Ku Klux Klan

The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) is the oldest and most infamous American hate group. Formed in 1865 by Confederate veterans to intimidate freed Black Americans and supporters of equal rights, the KKK used violence, threats, and murder to enforce white supremacy. At its peak in the 1920s, the KKK had millions of members and political influence, but its power declined due to scandals and opposition. The KKK rose again during the civil rights movement of the 1960s, bombing and murdering many, but has continued losing members since being designated a hate group. Today there are over 700 active hate groups still operating in the United States.

Uploaded by

Diana Carolina
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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KKK- Ku Klux Klan

who is KKK?
Ku Klux Klan has a long history of violence and it´s the oldest and most infamous of American hate groups.
Although Black Americans have typically been the Klan´s primary target, it also attacked jews, immigrants, members of
LGBTQ community and, until recently, Catholics.

history
KKK was created at the conclusion of the Civil War for six confederate veterans that fought in that war.
They gathered in Pulaski, Tennessee at the year of 1865, to create the Ku Klux Klan, a vigilante group mobilizing a
campaign of violence and terror against the progress of Reconstruction. The six soldiers were from the south, side that
just lost to the north side of america in the war. So, south side was completely devastated by unemployment, misery and
African Americans were set free from slave work and now they will have equality with whites .Therefore, veterans met
on December 24th to create Klan, since they were completely against Black People having the same rights and
opportunities as white people.

But why KKK? A lot of people says that “Ku Klux” comes from a Greek word: “kyklos” that means cycle
and unity. Klan was just added. But other people affirm that they choose the name cause it sounds like a riffle bolt being
cocked.

So, as the group gained members from Southern white society, they used violent intimidation to prevent
Black Americans, and any white people who supported Reconstruction, from voting and holding political office.
They were so sick that they taught to their own children something that they called: “the reality of racial
supremacy”, of course, the white supremacy. Kids learned that its wrong to marry with someone with a different race
and they were obligated to promise that they will never get “mixed up” with other races. Also they learned how to use
guns to defend themselves from other races.

To exercise social, political and economic power over African Americans, Klan members used violence or
threats of violence. KKK threatened, injured and murdered Black Americans who attempted to become educated, who
tried to vote, who befriended whites, who sought to leave the South, or who sought better paying jobs. Similar campaigns
of lynchings, tar-and-featherings, rapes and other violent attacks on those challenging white supremacy became a
hallmark of the Klan.

In an effort to maintain white hegemonic control of government, Ku Klux Klan engaged a violent campaign
of deadly voter intimidation during the 1868 presedential election. Thousands of Black People were killed just for not
voting on democrats like KKK forced them to do. Also white people that were against all of this and teachers who teach
black students were punished, cause “black individuals were supposed to be eternal slaves”.
Only in 1871, the group was considered illegal by the president but, obviously, they continued their criminal
activity clandestinely with their hooded white costumes and a white cone hat to preserve their identity and to terrify
people. The first leader or, “grand wizard” of KKK was Nathan Bedford Forrest, a well-known confederate general. He
directed a hierarchy of members with outlandish and pretty weird titles, such as imperial wizard and exalted Cyclopes
with the notion that they were making up an “invisible empire”.

After a short but violent period, Klan disbanded when it became evident that Jim Crow laws would secure
white supremacy across the country. But, as it was expected, they emerged again in 1915 thanks to a filmmaker. Griffith
made a movie called “The Birth of a Nation” where he made clear his sympathy for KKK. As we know, people are very
influenced so the movie motivated them to participate and have a voice at the Klan. But now, they’re second interaction
also opposed Catholic and Jewish immigrants.

In 1925, when its followers staged a march in Washington, D.C. (White House), the Klan had as many as 4
million members (some of them were influent politicians and millionaires) and, in some states, considerable political
power. A series of sex scandals, internal battles over power and newspaper exposés quickly reduced the group’s
influence again.

KKK arose a third time during the 1960s to oppose the civil rights movement .Bombings, murders and
other attacks by the Klan took a great many lives. Murders committed by Klansmen during the civil rights era include
four young girls killed in 1963 while preparing for Sunday Services (prostitutes). They started to write on victim’s
forehead with 3 K’s to left their “example” for others.

But, at certain time, KKK was being hunted and a lot of members were killed, hanged and even burned an
just at the end of 70s, some Anti-Klan groups ended up with things.

In 2021, 733 hate groups were tracked across the United States.

General Results
worse in
-South Dakota 1
-Nebraska 2
-Tennessee 3
-Delaware 4
-New Hampshire 5
2000 (106) 2021 (18)

2000 (1) 2021 (65)


2000 (186) 2021 (54)

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