The Ku Klux Klan: A Secret History

How was the Klan's message "palatable" during the 1920s?

"Join the Klan bc it's christian and moral and patriotic"

How did popular literature portray the Reconstruction-era Ku Klux Klan (KKK) or the "Invisible Empire"?

A heroic force just trying to maintain proper social order

According to the film, most of the Klan's violence was directed at which group?

Blacks

What was the most popular anti-Klan state law?

Forbade wearing the masks in public

Which U.S. Senator recanted his Klan membership when he became a U.S. Supreme Court justice?

Hugo Black

What state featured the Klan's greatest success story and its most despicable horror? What was Klan leader D. C. Stephenson's "technique" for gaining politicians' support? What event destroyed Stephenson and the Klan in his state? What happened to the Klan in the wake of the Stephenson scandal?

Indiana. Candidates had to sign pledges to loyalty to Stepenson. He raped a girl and she died as a result.

How did the 1915 film Birth of a Nation depict the Klan? How did black Americans respond to the film?

It portrayed KKK as heroes & AAs as monsters.

Why were Klan members in Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, confident that they could "get away" with murder? How did Louisiana governor John Parker respond to the Klan violence in Morehouse Parish? What was the result of the two grand jury hearings into the Klan murders in Morehouse Parish?

It was run by the Klan.

Which two groups bore the main brunt of the Klan's "religious terrorism"?

Jews & Catholics

What depiction of Klan members does the film offer in place of the stereotype of the Klan member as "unschooled" and "savage"?

Klan members were of all classes and education levels

Where and when was the Ku Klux Klan "reborn"?

Thanksgiving Eve 1915, Stone Mountain Georgia

What event did Imperial Wizard Hiram Evans stage in the wake of the Stephenson scandal?

The largest Klan parade (in D.C.)

What does one of the film's commentator mean by the notion that the 1920s Klan "destroyed itself"?

They didn't live up to their promises

What does the film provide as evidence of the Klan's political power?

They helped to elect 16 senators

How did women who supported Klan ideas take part in the organization?

created Women of the KKK and other orgs

What was key point of the 1920s Klan's successful recruitment strategy? Who could be a member of the Klan? Which groups were its enemies?

they called it a patriot organization and added anti-jews, immigrants, and catholics. white protestants only!!

What was the result of 1921 investigations of the Klan by the New York World newspaper and by U.S. Congress?

they found financial fraud but nothing happened about it. it caused the KKK to grow

What "fear" did the Klan "tap" in its members? What did the Klan promise its members?

to restore the old feeling of America

How did Klan recruiters use Protestant churches to attract new members?

Offered preachers free membership and positions of power. They would then give public donations to the church.

How did the Klan's total membership change from 1925 to 1928?

People left en masse