The Ku Klux Klan seems to be having somewhat of a modern resurgence, or rather they are stepping back out of the shadows, with the normalisation of White Supremacy in the post-Trump election era. Very much tied to and arguably integrated into the Republican party it’s hard to imagine it’s ideals sitting in any other political realm.

However, over 150 years ago things were a little different.

The Radical Republicans had actually been created, largely to fight slavery and post civil war there was a lot of resentment towards others by white Southern Democrats, who had opposed the freeing of black men, women and children from slavery.

So, the earliest incarnation of the Ku Klux Klan was formed in Pulaski, Tennessee, in 1866. White Southern and Protestant, getting their name from the Greek word kuklos, which means a group or a band and varying the word clan.

After growing out their roots as a recreational group they began their reign of terror directed at newly freed blacks, riding at night with white sheets to represent the ghosts of the Confederate dead and to avoid identification.

Much of the resentment was against the Reconstruction programs imposed on the South by a Republican Congress, the idea to create racial equality.

The KKK went from bad to worse, lynching, raping and murdering and more violent acts.

Shortly after their formation Nathan Bedford Forrest, a former slave trader and Confederate general had helmed the group and was much responsible for it’s organised operation. However in 1868 he formally disbanded it as even he was appalled by the violence the group was leaving in it’s wake!

However the group had taken on a life of it’s own and continued to grow!

In 1871 the federal government took the matter seriously and Congress organized a joint select committee to look into the groups activity. The civil rights act of 1871, often referred to as the Ku Klux Klan act, was passed which made night riding a crime and allowed the president to send federal troops to deal with the trouble.

Then along came the 1920s, the KKK had somewhat of a resurgence, getting involved in politics in both the Democratic and Republican parties leading onto yet more violence but the added evil of members being involved at every level of government and business.

Over the years the KKK became more associated with the Republican politicians and in many places is still heavily ingrained, especially at a local level but still much much higher up.