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Published byAlan Robertson Modified over 9 years ago
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Re-Rise of the Klan 1915 and Beyond
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Terms to Know Ku Klux Klan Prohibition Suffrage Boycott Manslaughter Lynching White supremacy
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Original Klan Formed in the Reconstruction South Instrument of white racial terror against newly freed slaves Died out in the 1870s http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/grant/peopleevent s/e_klan.html “… Ku Klux Klan, was formed in Pulaski, Tennessee, in 1865. Originally founded as a social club for former Confederate soldiers, the Klan evolved into a terrorist organization. It would be responsible for thousands of deaths, and would help to weaken the political power of Southern blacks and Republicans.” PBS.org
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The NEW Klan Formed in Stone Mountain, GA 1915 Inspired by D.W. Griffith’s racist movie Birth of a Nation –Depicted the original KKK as a heroic organization http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/rushmore/gallery/ga l_rushmore_05.html 1915, the Daughters of the Confederacy had this sculpture of Robert E. Lee carved into Stone Mountain.
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Birth of a Nation The film depicted the original KKK as a heroic organization Until 1920, the Klan was limited to a few local chapters in Georgia and Alabama
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The Klan Transforms Hiram W. Evans, a dentist from Dallas became imperial wizard in 1922 He hired professional publicists and fund-raisers to recruit members They advocated “100% Americanism” and “faithful maintenance of white supremacy” Also … –Supported Prohibition –Attacked Darwinism –Attacked birth control
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Klan’s New Targets Original targets were freed slaves in the 1800s New Klan made a special target of the Catholic church –A hostile and dangerous alien power –Catholic and democracy cannot mix Presented itself as the righteous defender of the traditional values of small-town Protestant America By 1924, more than 3 million members President Harding even joined
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Klan Tactics Klan Targets Boycott businesses Threatened families Public whippings Arson lynching Sexually promiscuous Blasphemy Drunkenness Blacks Catholics Jews
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Women Half a million joined Constituted nearly half of the Klan in some states Klanswomen drew on family and community traditions to defend themselves and their families against what they saw as corruption and immorality
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Fall of the Klan 1925, Grand Dragon David C. Stephenson picked up a young woman at a party, got her drunk on a train with bootleg liquor and assaulted her The woman died and Stephenson was convicted of manslaughter The most famous leader was disgraced and in jail The new Klan began to lose members and influence Economic prosperity of the late 1920s also led to its decline
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The Klan? Others? The KKK may not be a very active organization today, but they do still exist. What other “hate groups” exist today? Bibliography Faragher, John Mack, Mari Jo Buhle, Daniel Czitrom, and Susan H. Armitage. Out of Many: A History of the American People. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2002.
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