God, Race And Nation Inside the Ku Klux Klan's Secrets

By Brian Gibson

This book analyzes the profound symbolism encapsulated in the white robe and hood famously worn by the modern Ku Klux Klan, exploring their central role in shaping the racial consciousness of contemporary America. Tracing the historical evolution of Klan regalia, the book illustrates how the visual representation of the Klansman in uniform influenced the rise, expansion, and ultimately decline of this notorious white supremacist fraternity in the early 20th century.

The book meticulously examines the intricate interplay between the image of Klansmen in uniform, the clothes themselves, and the ideological underpinnings embraced by the Klan. It provides a compelling lens to understand the intricate connections between material culture, visual reconstruction, and material use.

• Language: English
• Publisher: vincenzo nappi
• Release date: Dec 28, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223497516

Book preview

Chapter One

THE HISTORY OF THE KU KLUX KLAN

By early 1865, the outcome of the Civil War was decided. The Union won the war, and the South grudgingly surrendered. Abraham Lincoln intended to lead the South into peacetime recovery with the support pledged to him by Southern political and military leaders. A radical Republican Congress, however, lacked Lincoln's enthusiasm in letting the South guide its own recovery. Congress, nevertheless, was unable to contend with Lincoln's popularity. Guarded by his popularity, Lincoln could control the members of Congress who disagreed with him. His assassination, however, changed the Nation's approach to Southern Reconstruction. With Lincoln dead, Congress moved against his views on reconstruction and passed the first Reconstruction Act. The Reconstruction Act barred the old white leadership from voting and practicing law. Further, it mandated that federal troops be brought in and stationed in every part of the South. These factors, combined with a general bleak Southern outlook, ultimately led to the creation of the Ku Klux Klan.

Incredible as it may seem, the Ku Klux Klan started as a joke. Six young Confederate veterans, out of work and with few prospects, met on Christmas Eve 1865 in Pulaski, Tennessee, and decided to form a club. They intended to add a bit of fun to their dreary, postwar life... With intent to amuse and entertain, the veterans decided to masquerade as ghosts, covering their heads with pillowcases and their bodies with bedsheets. While they were at it, they draped sheets over their horses... The veterans played pranks on their parents and serenaded their girlfriends. According to several sources, Ku Klux Klan came from the Greek word Kuklos, meaning circle, band, or wheel. The veterans may have chosen the word the kuklos to identify the group because it was suggestive of a small, closed, or secret circle of friends.

The founders of the Ku Klux Klan may have changed kuklos to 'Ku Klux' and added 'Klan' to match the spelling of 'Ku Klux.' Klan was added to Ku Klux because the Confederate veterans were all of the Scotch-Irish descent; hence the addition of the word Klan from Clan. The Pulaski pranksters soon noticed that their ghostly night rides had a strange effect on the black population. The Night Riders" began to play upon the superstitious beliefs that existed in the African cultures from which many of the free slaves descended. The new Klansmen used trickery as a psychological control to prey upon the fears of the black community. Klansmen would ride to a black hut pretending to be the ghosts of Confederate soldiers killed in battle and ask for water. They would claim not to have had a drink since leaving hell. The Klansmen would then appear to drink buckets of water. Concealed under their robes were rubber bags to catch the water. Another common trick involved offering the victim a detachable hand. He was expected to shriek and run for