Starting in 1921, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) began their terrible acts, they were a white supremacist group, believing that all non-Caucasian people are inferior and that they have no place In the US because they believe that it’s the true home to white Christians. The KKK was a horrendous racist organization; they tortured people, fought for superiority and targeted many African-Americans because they think of themselves as superior. They changed a lot of people’s beliefs during this time period as well. The Original Ku Klux Klan was founded in Pulaski, Tennessee during Reconstruction between December of 1865 and August of 1866. The founders of the KKK were all Confederate veterans and were also well educated and from wealthy families. The original Klan was intended to be a social organization for fun and play. The actions of the early KKK were intended only as a source of entertainment. Activities included posing as ghosts of Confederate dead to tease and scare the black freedmen. They also played jokes on blacks. Within the next three years, the Ku Klux Klan and allies committed over 2,000 murders and many rapes, brandings and shootings.
The KKK mostly targeted African-Americans in the past due to the freeing of slaves by Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. Right after the Civil War, the Ku Klux Klan was formed (Moore, 2008)by ex-Confederate soldiers. “The group, which proclaimed its mission to be ‘racial purity’, grew in number and became national, electing some of their members to public office in many states (and not just Southern states).” (Bonk T. C., 1999) Many of the Klansmen (members of the KKK) were not even punished, by the government, for the terrible crimes they had committed. The KKK uses passages and words from the Holy Bible to support their cause and
justify their crimes. The Holy Bible is the number one source of knowledge for the Ku Klux Klan. Members of the Klan believe in the literal truth of the Bible. Many active Klansmen were ordained ministers. Also, the majority of the members belong to some Protestant church. As the group attempts to define Christian identity, they give reasons why white Christians are superior people. The activities that the Ku Klux Klan partook in were horrendous. They burnt African-American’s churches and church crosses and they would even throw bricks and stones into their homes. They would torture blacks at their meeting and even murdered and raped African-Americans just because of the colour of their skin. The blacks did try to fight back, but in non-violent ways. Any whites that had any contact at all with blacks, no matter what the reason, were treated as a black. The KKK would take every chance to let African-Americans know that no matter what, they will always be less than white people in every possible way. Klansmen couldn’t bring to