\F6\C2\LN\C3\LF\CTKu Klux Klan\LF
- the story\LF
\C2\LN\LF\C1\FU\F1by Tommy\LF\LF\LF
\C1Mostly based on Kim Moeller Hansen's book "Ku Klux Klan" (Danish).
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Ku Klux Klan, a secret political organisation in USA, was probably the first
organised racism in the world and are the second most famous racist
organisation after Hitler's Nazi-party. In the 1920s it had considerable
influence in elections in the South and terrorised and killed people they
disliked. Ku Klux Klan still exists, but on a level far from when it was
one of the most dangerous organisations in America. \C3\F3R.A.W.\C1\F1 brings you the
story about the racists with the white coats and the burning crosses....
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\F4\BF\C2THE CIVIL WAR
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\NM\F1\C1On January 1th 1863, the 16. president of USA, Abraham Lincoln, abolished
slavery, and when the Civil War was over in 1865 the Southern States had to
set all their slaves free. This especially upset the poor white population
who now had to compete with, to use their own words, "niggers" in getting
jobs.
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The Southern States answered by making so-called "Jim Crow-laws". "Jim Crow"
is an invective for negro and these laws led to segregation between whites and
colored in theaters, schools, parks, hospitals, prisons etc. One could see
signs with "For Whites only" or "Colored only" everywhere. But racism soon
showed a more violent and cruel side....
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\F4\BF\C2A SYMBOL OF HATE AND FEAR
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\NM\F1\C1Eight months after the Civil War, on the 15th December 1865, six young
Confederate-soldiers met in the town of Pulaski, Tennessee. They were
disappointed over the defeat and wanted revenge. They formed therefore a
secret club, which should scare negroes and fight soldiers from the north.
The club was first named \C3\F3"The Knights of Kuklos"\C1\F1, where kuklos is a Greek word
for circle. The circle should function as a symbol of friendship and concord.
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"The Knights of Kuklos" was soon re-named \C3\F3"Ku Klux Klan"\C1\F1. There is still
doubt about where the name came from. Some say the name imitates the sound of
a revolver being cocked. Other thinks it has it's name from a local
indian-tribe, called Co-Cletz, which disliked negroes. Without regard to the
origin of the name, Ku Klux Klan soon became a symbol of hate and fear.
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Soon some more unsatisfied whites joined KKK and several others gave their
sympathy to the club without being members. In the first two years they only
scared negroes without hurting them. They hid behind white, red and black
hoods and made several "acts" to scare the colored to "death". Horses were
dressed or painted to look uncanny and the hooves were covered with cloth to
not make any sound.
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The KKK-riders, often 200-300, chose a casual negro-cottage and told the
negroes that they were ghosts of dead Confederate-soldiers returned to take
revenge. At that time the whites thought all negroes were very superstitious
and belived in ghosts. This was not true, but although they knew the riders
were of flesh and blood, they were all scared. They had heard rumours what
happened if you messed with the KKK and the klan therefore had some control
over the negro-population. They also often made people, who opposed them,
flee away by sending them various warnings in the shape of for example sprig
of oak leaves, melon seeds or orange pips (seeds) (the last is written about
in the Sherlock Holmes-story "The Five Orange Pips"). People who got these
warnings, knew that if they didn't stop their opposition against the klan,
they would be killed.
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\F4\BF\C2VIOLENCE
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\NM\F1\C1The local police didn't do anything about the klan's pursuit of negroes and
from 1867 the terror of Ku Klux Klan increased in high speed. There were held
meetings and speeches around a big burning cross and one agreed that all evil
in the world were the negroes fault. The slogan was \C3\F3"The only good nigger is
a dead nigger!"\C1\F1. People were encouraged to hurt negroes. Soon they were
hanged without law and order, brutally maltreated - men were castrated and
women raped. Also whites who treated negroes like fellow humanbeings were
pursued, which later was known as being "ku-kluxed". They didn't even spare
children. Many negro-schools became targets and several children and
grown-ups were killed in fires and explosions.
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\F4\BF\C2POLITICS
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\NM\F1\C1In short time the klan's power grew considerably and it got sections in
several states. In 1868, three years after it's foundation, KKK had a total
membership of 500.000. The klan was soon involved in politics. At the
president-election in 1868, 1.800 people were killed or wounded in the state
of Louisiana during the last 14 days of the election. And at least 3.000
negroes were forced away from the polling stations.
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Ku Klux Klan's terror continued after the elections, but in 1871 the
government put an end to it by prohibiting all klan-terror. Some places
soldiers had to put an end to the violence, and Ku Klux Klan was now
officially dead. But the racism wasn't removed and soon the cross would burn
again.....
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\F4\BF\C2KU KLUX KLAN RETURNS
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\NM\F1\C1The klan was awaked by William Joseph Simmons, when he at a meeting in 1915
founded the new Ku Klux Klan called "The Knights of Ku Klux Klan". Only 34
citizens showed up for the meeting, but in few years the amount would
"explode".
\LF\LF\F3\C2(PLEASE FLIP PAGE...)
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