Klu Klux and the 60s

• The KKK claimed responsibility for strategically placing bombs underneath the Black church just as Sunday school was ending. The bombs later exploded and killed four Black schoolgirls between the ages of 11 and 14.

• Civil rights activist, husband and father has been assassinated by KKK member, Byron De La Beckwith, in his driveway while returning home from a meeting with NAACP lawyers.

• White civil rights activist, mother and wife. She was shot twice in the head by four KKK members who became enraged after seeing her riding in the car with a Black man, who was also an activists.

Tragic events like these, were a regular occurrence, throughout the 1960s, as there became an extreme presence of Klu Klux Klan (KKK) members, which therefore instigated a significant amount of fear within America during this time. These racist attacks, on behalf of the KKK, greatly impacted America during the 1960s and continued to leave a legacy through to today.

The presence and activity of the KKK in the 1960s, significantly contributed to radical, racial influenced political events and control, through the immense fear, and violence towards black people in America.

Black participation in public life in the South became one of the most radical features of Reconstruction during the 1960s, when Black people were elected to southern state governments and even to the Senate. In its turn, the Ku Klux Klan engaged in an underground campaign of violence against Republican leaders and voters (both black and white) to reverse the policies of Radical Reconstruction and restore white supremacy in the South. In this struggle, they were joined by similar organizations such as the Knights of the White Camelia (founded in Louisiana) and the White Brotherhood.  

This shows how the KKK, used violence to achieve, racial political control, with contributed to fear and violence towards black Americans during the 1960s.

Figure 1, shows a group of KKK members dressed in their white uniform, are riding horses through the streets of Tulsa, Oka. This image instantly, displays the KKKs prominence during the 1960s, as you can see the KKK members travelling alongside normal members of the public like it is a normal thing. This inflicts a sense of fear, which was obviously directed at black members of society at the time.

Figure 2 shows KKK members storming down Pennsylvania Avenue, in Washington, in a paraded fashion, during 1925, to show their dominance and presence in American Life. This image this displays the efforts made by the KKK to assert their goals and beliefs of white supremacy, through a political and government attack as they are parading at a highly significant and influential government location, to emphasize their goals, therefore inflicting a sense of fear and violence mentally towards black people in America during the 1960s.

Figure 3 shows, a Jacksonville police officer stood with Charles Griffin after he was attacked on August 27, 1960, during a launch counter protest by civil rights activists in Florida. (Florida Historical Society). This image directly demonstrates the violence committed by the KKK during the 1960s, towards civil rights activists going against their radical racial beliefs.

Figure 4 shows the KKK staging an “America First”, parade in Binghamton, New York in the 1920s. The sign held up by the KKK members in this image states, “America First, One God, One Country, One Flag”. This shows the belief and motive viewpoint of the KKK during their predominance, as an extreme right-wing party, which therefore explains why they committed the acts of racial terrorism that occurred.

As demonstrated throughout the evidence and analysis found within this feature article, The presence and activity of the KKK in the 1960s, significantly contributed to radical, racial influenced political events and control, through the immense fear, and violence towards black people in America.

However, the legacy that the KKK has left with us today, is shown through, governments and people in power recognizing civil rights movements such as black lives matter, to ensure no racial catastrophes like the KKK ever occur again.

• Davis, R., 2016. 12 horrific crimes committed by the KKK between 1921 and 2016. Essence. Available at: https://www.essence.com/culture/horrific-kkk-crimes/ [Accessed November 2, 2021].
  • History.com Editors, 2009. Ku Klux Klan. History.com. Available at: https://www.history.com/topics/reconstruction/ku-klux-klan [Accessed November 2, 2021].

   

  • Little, B., 2019. How prohibition fueled the rise of the Ku Klux Klan. History.com. Available at:https://www.history.com/news/kkk-terror-during-prohibition [Accessed November 2, 2021].

   

  • Trent, S., 2020. 'ax handle Saturday': The Klan's vicious attack on black protesters in Florida 60 years ago. The Washington Post. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/08/27/axe-handle-saturday-klan-attack-civil-rights-protesters/ [Accessed November 2, 2021]. 
  • Diebel, M. & Weise, E., 2015. Denials quickly follow 'anonymous' list of alleged KKK members. USA Today. Available at: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/11/02/reports-hacktivist-groud-anonymous-publishes-names-alleged-ku-klux-klan-members/75039282/ [Accessed November 2, 2021]. 
  • Dias, E., 2021. A century ago, White Protestant extremism marched on Washington. The New York Times. Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/07/us/white-protestants-ku-klux-klan.html [Accessed November 2, 2021].