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The Ku Klux Klan (KKK)
"In world history, those who have helped to build the same culture are not necessarily of one race, and those of the same race have not all participated in one culture. In scientific language, culture is not a function of race" (Benedict). The sad fact is that many races are discriminated against. Discrimination is defined as the act of perceiving and making evident the distinctions between two different groups of people. There have been many groups that have been very discriminating, but the one that sticks out like a diamond in coal is the Ku Klux Klan.
The original Ku Klux Klan was formed, in April 1866, as a social organization for ex-confederates in Pulaski, Tennessee. This was during the time after the civil war, known as the Reconstruction period (Benet's). The name Ku Klux Klan came from the Greek word kuklos, meaning band or circle (Benet's). The Ku Klux Klan spread very rapidly through the south and soon got the nickname of the "Invisible Empire" (Ingalls). The Ku Klux Klan has been referred to by many different terms such as The Klan or KKK. In 1867, Nathaniel Bedford Forrest, an ex-confederate cavalry leader, and many other ex-confederates held a meeting and converted the social group to a group that opposed the Republican State government (Trelease). Nathaniel Bedford and many common group members, Klansmen, formed this group for three reasons. They wanted to keep white supremacy evident, make sure the black community didn't revolt, and make sure the black community stayed in "their place" (Trelease). The Klansmen were from every economic social class, but the leaders would usually be from the elite professional class (Trelease). The Klan was and still is present in both America and Canada (Ingalls).
The hierarchy of the KKK was set in the April 1867 meeting (Columbia). At this meeting, Nathaniel Bedford Forrest was made the Grand Wizard, which meant he was the leader of all of the clans (Columbia). A step lower than the Grand Wizard was the Grand Dragon (Columbia). A Grand Dragon and his Realm controlled each state (Columbia). The Realms were made up of eight Hydras, who acted as a staff to the Grand Dragon (Columbia). Below the Grand Dragon were the Grand Titans with their six Furies that controlled each county (Columbia). These rankings classified the duties of each one of the members.
The Ku Klux Klan us...
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...ade more damage by parading around the town.
The Ku Klux Klan, above any other group, is a very discriminating group. The KKK tries to spread hatred and prejudice. Now in the 20th century the truth came out and KKK power and membership has declined very rapidly in the recent years. In this millennium it is most important to focus on peace and unity that was set as a standard at the end of the 20th century.
Work Cited
"Blacks Face Off With Klan Marchers in Jasper, TX." Jet 13 July, 1998: 14-16.
"Hatred Turns Out Not To Be Color-Blind." The Week Society Multimedia Almanac. Minneapolis, The Learning Company, 1998 CD-ROM.
Ingalls, Robert P. "Ku Klux Klan." World Book Multimedia Encyclopedia. World Book, Inc., 1996.
"Ku Klux Klan." Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia of American Literature. 1st ed. New York: Harper Collins Pub., 1991. 574.
"Ku Klux Klan." The Columbia Encyclopedia. 5th ed. Philadelphia: Columbia University Press, 1993. 20869.
"The KKK." Times Magazine Multimedia Almanac. Minneapolis, The Learning Company, 1998 CD-ROM.
Trelease, Allen W. "Ku Klux Klan." The Reader's Companion to American History, 1991 ed. New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1991. 625.