1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:06,280 Speaker 1: M Hey everybody, I'm Robert Evans and this is yet 2 00:00:06,320 --> 00:00:08,959 Speaker 1: again Behind the Bastards, the podcast where we tell you 3 00:00:09,000 --> 00:00:11,560 Speaker 1: everything you don't know about the very worst people in 4 00:00:11,640 --> 00:00:15,240 Speaker 1: all of history. Now, today we are on part two 5 00:00:15,640 --> 00:00:19,680 Speaker 1: of our series on the KKK, Part part my guest 6 00:00:19,720 --> 00:00:24,279 Speaker 1: with me, as with Part one Katie and Cody the 7 00:00:24,800 --> 00:00:30,840 Speaker 1: Stuffed News. How much network of that's the one that's here. 8 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:34,840 Speaker 1: We are. So, how you guys doing? Still still got 9 00:00:34,840 --> 00:00:37,280 Speaker 1: a cold? Still good, I'm still doing well, still happy. 10 00:00:37,400 --> 00:00:40,360 Speaker 1: It's two days after you heard our last episode, but 11 00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:43,199 Speaker 1: it's just minutes after we recorded the last one. But 12 00:00:43,280 --> 00:00:45,520 Speaker 1: in those minutes we've grabbed us a dorito or three. 13 00:00:45,600 --> 00:00:48,680 Speaker 1: There are so many derritos in here there. They are interesting, 14 00:00:49,159 --> 00:00:50,960 Speaker 1: they're delicious. I mean, how do you guys like the 15 00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:54,880 Speaker 1: tapato ones? That's spicier than I expected, Because that's spicier 16 00:00:54,920 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: than tapatio is. It's got a real kick if that's 17 00:00:58,960 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 1: what you're looking for. Tapatia is my go to U sauce. 18 00:01:02,920 --> 00:01:05,840 Speaker 1: So I'm like at crystals. I grew up with crystals hot. 19 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:09,920 Speaker 1: You know who would not have liked tapatito doritos? K 20 00:01:10,400 --> 00:01:14,000 Speaker 1: I'm gonna I was hoping that was a seamless transitionless 21 00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:16,759 Speaker 1: transition to the KKK. Well, then we should keep talking 22 00:01:16,800 --> 00:01:19,720 Speaker 1: about tapatio. I was hoping for another reason to not 23 00:01:19,800 --> 00:01:23,440 Speaker 1: like the KKK. So in Part one we talked about 24 00:01:23,480 --> 00:01:26,959 Speaker 1: the Original Clan, which was a terrorist organization that started 25 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:29,039 Speaker 1: as a bunch of drunk frat boys pretending to be 26 00:01:29,080 --> 00:01:32,840 Speaker 1: ghosts and turned into a murder gang headed by a 27 00:01:32,880 --> 00:01:35,880 Speaker 1: former rebel general. Finding how that works. Part two we're 28 00:01:35,920 --> 00:01:38,600 Speaker 1: going to talk about the rise of the KKK in 29 00:01:38,640 --> 00:01:41,759 Speaker 1: the nineteen twenties, which was an order of magnitude larger 30 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:44,959 Speaker 1: than it was in the eighteen sixties and a hell 31 00:01:45,000 --> 00:01:46,959 Speaker 1: of a lot weirder. This is not going to go 32 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:49,200 Speaker 1: where you think it's going to go. This is a 33 00:01:49,240 --> 00:01:52,680 Speaker 1: weird story. Keep saying that a lot harder. It's hard 34 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:56,520 Speaker 1: to a magic super excited because it's already weird. It's 35 00:01:56,560 --> 00:02:00,440 Speaker 1: already weird. Our Grand Magus and our you know queen. 36 00:02:00,840 --> 00:02:06,480 Speaker 1: There there's no queen, Imperial Emperor. There are some king 37 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:09,280 Speaker 1: Kleigels in this one. I don't know what a klegal is. 38 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:15,640 Speaker 1: I do. It has to deal with the Grand the 39 00:02:15,639 --> 00:02:22,200 Speaker 1: Grand Kegels. The Grand Kegels came later. We're not part 40 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:27,240 Speaker 1: of the clan. They didn't come later that. That was 41 00:02:27,440 --> 00:02:31,880 Speaker 1: very good, Cody, that was very witty. W We're gonna 42 00:02:31,919 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 1: check out for the rest of the episode. You know what, 43 00:02:34,760 --> 00:02:36,320 Speaker 1: just dial tone for the rest of it. You guys 44 00:02:36,360 --> 00:02:38,960 Speaker 1: got your dose a comedy. You want to go get 45 00:02:38,960 --> 00:02:42,400 Speaker 1: a drink. Thanks for stopping by, stopping by, all right, 46 00:02:42,639 --> 00:02:46,519 Speaker 1: here's the episode. In nineteen nineteen, a pamphlet started circulating 47 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:50,240 Speaker 1: amongst the townships and villages of the American countryside. On 48 00:02:50,320 --> 00:02:52,440 Speaker 1: its front was a drawing of a klansman on a 49 00:02:52,480 --> 00:02:57,359 Speaker 1: rearing steed. The title was the Ku Klux Klan Yesterday, Today, 50 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:01,200 Speaker 1: and Forever. The flyer's purpose was to announce the glorious 51 00:03:01,280 --> 00:03:04,840 Speaker 1: rebirth of the KKK. It opened up by defending the 52 00:03:04,880 --> 00:03:08,840 Speaker 1: first clan, the ku Klux Klan. The Invisible Empire was 53 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:12,679 Speaker 1: the great idea that's capitalized of American reconstruction. We say 54 00:03:12,720 --> 00:03:16,040 Speaker 1: American reconstruction for the reason that all America was affected 55 00:03:16,040 --> 00:03:19,720 Speaker 1: by reconstruction influences. It actually says influences, and I guess 56 00:03:19,760 --> 00:03:23,600 Speaker 1: that the racists. This is what the President models his 57 00:03:23,680 --> 00:03:27,880 Speaker 1: tweets after. I was going to say more capitalizing and 58 00:03:27,919 --> 00:03:32,280 Speaker 1: like the South most of all, yes, but nevertheless all 59 00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:35,000 Speaker 1: all is capitalized for the great threat. Great threat is 60 00:03:35,040 --> 00:03:37,480 Speaker 1: capitalized to the white race that loomed on the horizon 61 00:03:37,520 --> 00:03:39,480 Speaker 1: of the South, would have spread through the entire nation 62 00:03:39,560 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 1: had not the white robe of the ku Klux Klan 63 00:03:41,760 --> 00:03:45,480 Speaker 1: kept unrevealed those courageous and devoted hearts that were consecrated 64 00:03:45,520 --> 00:03:49,240 Speaker 1: to saving the Anglo Saxon civilization of our country, protecting 65 00:03:49,280 --> 00:03:51,920 Speaker 1: the homes and well being of our people, and shielding 66 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:55,200 Speaker 1: the virtue of womenhood. The original ku Klux were not 67 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:59,320 Speaker 1: outlaws all caps or moral degenerates all caps, nor did 68 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:02,000 Speaker 1: they perpetual outlaw rate, which is a great way we 69 00:04:02,000 --> 00:04:06,080 Speaker 1: don't use that. I really like this is the clan 70 00:04:06,120 --> 00:04:11,760 Speaker 1: and they're terrible, but I really like satisfy claimant. They 71 00:04:11,760 --> 00:04:14,160 Speaker 1: were men of moral and social standing, and their leaders 72 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:17,560 Speaker 1: were men of sterling character and unquestioned culture. They reverently 73 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:20,240 Speaker 1: bowed to the soul of real law all caps, and 74 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:23,279 Speaker 1: swore to enforce its principles of justice, protection, and the 75 00:04:23,279 --> 00:04:26,560 Speaker 1: pursuit of happiness. That strong arm fought valiantly for the 76 00:04:26,600 --> 00:04:29,159 Speaker 1: preservation of the integrity of the race against the cruelty 77 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:35,160 Speaker 1: of base, unjust and tyrannical legislations and insufferable conditions, no joke. 78 00:04:35,240 --> 00:04:38,200 Speaker 1: I feel like that's formative literature for Trump. Like, I mean, 79 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:40,599 Speaker 1: he grew up reading this. He's definitely got some better 80 00:04:40,640 --> 00:04:44,120 Speaker 1: words in there. I think. I mean his dad's there's 81 00:04:44,200 --> 00:04:47,440 Speaker 1: rumors that he was in the clan during this. I mean, 82 00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:50,080 Speaker 1: like this is the kind of and they've got drafts 83 00:04:50,120 --> 00:04:52,760 Speaker 1: of these things, like laying around the Trump household when 84 00:04:52,800 --> 00:04:57,920 Speaker 1: he was a kid. They got the moral degeneracy there that. Yeah, 85 00:04:58,440 --> 00:05:00,479 Speaker 1: although I got a promise, this is not gonna go 86 00:05:00,520 --> 00:05:03,479 Speaker 1: where you're thinking now. I read a book for this episode, 87 00:05:03,520 --> 00:05:06,360 Speaker 1: to the Second Coming of the KKK by Lynda Gordon. 88 00:05:06,960 --> 00:05:08,839 Speaker 1: I want to advocate reading both of the books for 89 00:05:08,839 --> 00:05:11,680 Speaker 1: this podcast because they're both good. But Lynda Gordon's book 90 00:05:11,720 --> 00:05:16,200 Speaker 1: is really special. It is almost unbelievably dense. I've rarely 91 00:05:16,240 --> 00:05:19,560 Speaker 1: in my life encountered so much information from so many 92 00:05:19,600 --> 00:05:22,880 Speaker 1: different sources consolidated into a single book of this size. 93 00:05:23,600 --> 00:05:25,359 Speaker 1: I'm just kind of in awe of the amount of 94 00:05:25,360 --> 00:05:27,480 Speaker 1: work she must have put into it, and like how 95 00:05:27,640 --> 00:05:29,960 Speaker 1: like it's it's really good. We're only using fractions of 96 00:05:29,960 --> 00:05:32,599 Speaker 1: it for this episode, but it is a fantastic book, 97 00:05:33,160 --> 00:05:34,920 Speaker 1: so I really recommend giving it a read if you're 98 00:05:34,920 --> 00:05:39,359 Speaker 1: interested in the history of American radical right wing extremism. Now, 99 00:05:39,680 --> 00:05:42,719 Speaker 1: this book claims that the second KKKS rise was directly 100 00:05:42,760 --> 00:05:45,440 Speaker 1: inspired by the release of a movie, Birth of a Nation. 101 00:05:45,560 --> 00:05:49,240 Speaker 1: In Birth of a Nation was a fanciful story about 102 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:51,480 Speaker 1: the first KKK and how they saved white women from 103 00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:54,039 Speaker 1: Ray Peppi Friedman. It was the first film ever shown 104 00:05:54,040 --> 00:05:58,760 Speaker 1: at the White House. Woodrow Wilson fucking loved it, saying, quote, 105 00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:01,479 Speaker 1: it is like writing history with lightning, and my only 106 00:06:01,520 --> 00:06:07,360 Speaker 1: regret is that it is also terribly true. Maybe America's 107 00:06:07,360 --> 00:06:10,480 Speaker 1: where as present if you're getting this guy's opinion on it, 108 00:06:10,800 --> 00:06:15,400 Speaker 1: what with the whole Nazism and and that with what 109 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:20,320 Speaker 1: with a lot of things. William Joseph Simmons, a doctor 110 00:06:20,360 --> 00:06:24,000 Speaker 1: from Atlanta, Spanish American war veteran and minister, was a 111 00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:26,160 Speaker 1: huge fan of the movie. When he got back from 112 00:06:26,200 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 1: serving garrison duty during the war, he drifted around a 113 00:06:29,040 --> 00:06:31,839 Speaker 1: number of jobs, showing no aptitude for anything, and joined 114 00:06:31,880 --> 00:06:35,080 Speaker 1: fifteen different fraternal orders. Now, today, for rats are just 115 00:06:35,120 --> 00:06:37,080 Speaker 1: something that a chunk of college kids do, But back 116 00:06:37,120 --> 00:06:39,039 Speaker 1: in the day, there was very little going on, and 117 00:06:39,160 --> 00:06:41,560 Speaker 1: most men were in a fraternal order of some type. 118 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:44,760 Speaker 1: Many were in multiple It was an extremely popular way 119 00:06:44,800 --> 00:06:46,320 Speaker 1: to have something to do and feel like part of 120 00:06:46,320 --> 00:06:49,680 Speaker 1: a community. So community is important, very important. Simmons was 121 00:06:49,720 --> 00:06:51,640 Speaker 1: desperate for a community, but none of the groups he 122 00:06:51,720 --> 00:06:53,800 Speaker 1: joined fit the bill. He was a fan of Birth 123 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:55,880 Speaker 1: of a Nation, and he'd been inspired by the lynching 124 00:06:55,880 --> 00:06:58,839 Speaker 1: of Leo Frank, a Jewish man falsely accused of rape 125 00:06:58,880 --> 00:07:01,400 Speaker 1: and murder. None of them, Bill, they weren't quite evil 126 00:07:01,440 --> 00:07:09,120 Speaker 1: and fired by the lynching of It's not really inspired me, Like, 127 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:13,760 Speaker 1: what about? What about it? Simmons started reading about the 128 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:17,760 Speaker 1: original clan. He bought a copy of the original KKK prescript, 129 00:07:17,880 --> 00:07:20,440 Speaker 1: mixed in a little bit of Masonism, and tried to 130 00:07:20,440 --> 00:07:23,640 Speaker 1: start up his own fraternal order, essentially cause playing as 131 00:07:23,680 --> 00:07:26,760 Speaker 1: the Ku Klux Klan. Simmons is KKK was just as 132 00:07:26,840 --> 00:07:30,200 Speaker 1: racist as the original, but was also differently bigoted. It 133 00:07:30,280 --> 00:07:35,120 Speaker 1: ranted against quote the hairy claw of Bolshevism, socialism, syndicalism, 134 00:07:35,120 --> 00:07:38,040 Speaker 1: i w W, is UM and other isms. I w W. 135 00:07:38,280 --> 00:07:42,920 Speaker 1: The International Workers of the World are very influential grouping unions. Yeah. Uh. 136 00:07:42,960 --> 00:07:46,120 Speaker 1: He believed that these forces were quote seeking in an 137 00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:49,760 Speaker 1: insidious but very powerful manner to undermine the very fundamentals 138 00:07:49,800 --> 00:07:56,640 Speaker 1: of the nation. Yeah, first letter in nations capitalism. Yeah, 139 00:07:57,000 --> 00:07:58,440 Speaker 1: I knew this was going to be right into the 140 00:07:58,520 --> 00:08:01,559 Speaker 1: vein for you. So when the KKK had last ridden, 141 00:08:01,600 --> 00:08:04,560 Speaker 1: socialism had not really been a buzzword in America. Marx 142 00:08:04,600 --> 00:08:07,320 Speaker 1: and Ingles had only published the Communist Manifesto in eighteen 143 00:08:07,360 --> 00:08:10,680 Speaker 1: forty eight, and ship traveled slowly back then. Social democratic 144 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:12,680 Speaker 1: parties were starting to become a thing in Europe by 145 00:08:12,680 --> 00:08:14,720 Speaker 1: the late eighteen sixties, but most of the US was 146 00:08:14,760 --> 00:08:17,800 Speaker 1: off doing its own thing. The assassination of William McKinley 147 00:08:17,800 --> 00:08:20,560 Speaker 1: by a Polish American anarchist in nineteen o one really 148 00:08:20,600 --> 00:08:23,720 Speaker 1: helped to pour gas on that whole fire. Simmons started 149 00:08:23,760 --> 00:08:28,080 Speaker 1: advertising for KKK two, this time It's Clannier. In nineteen fifteen. 150 00:08:28,280 --> 00:08:32,920 Speaker 1: He fully reloaded or Electric Boogaloo. You know, you pick 151 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:36,200 Speaker 1: your you pick your own sequel title, KKK Harder, you 152 00:08:36,200 --> 00:08:40,000 Speaker 1: know whatever there's there's. In his promotional materials, he described 153 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:43,560 Speaker 1: it as quote a classy order of the highest class, capitalized, 154 00:08:43,720 --> 00:08:51,040 Speaker 1: no class man, no roughnecks, rowdies, nor yellow streaks. Real 155 00:08:51,160 --> 00:08:55,760 Speaker 1: men whose oaths are inviolate are needed. His oats are inviolate, 156 00:08:55,920 --> 00:08:58,600 Speaker 1: inviolate in violent. Yeah, they're not going to break their 157 00:08:58,600 --> 00:09:02,800 Speaker 1: oaths and their bond class of higher class, very good class, 158 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:07,400 Speaker 1: very classiest men. It was not exactly an instant hit. 159 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:09,800 Speaker 1: Only a few dozen people signed up at first. Simmons 160 00:09:09,840 --> 00:09:11,800 Speaker 1: went out of his way to find a few very 161 00:09:11,840 --> 00:09:15,080 Speaker 1: old former clansmen to join. He proclaimed himself the Imperial 162 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:17,240 Speaker 1: Wizard of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and 163 00:09:17,280 --> 00:09:20,880 Speaker 1: started holding meetings. Now, unlike the original clan, they didn't 164 00:09:20,880 --> 00:09:23,480 Speaker 1: start off doing anything out in the world. This was 165 00:09:23,600 --> 00:09:25,800 Speaker 1: just a place where grown men went to engage in 166 00:09:25,880 --> 00:09:28,920 Speaker 1: weird ass quasi magical rituals with other masked men. It 167 00:09:29,040 --> 00:09:33,600 Speaker 1: was LARPing. LARPing as the KKK, who were themselves larpert 168 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:40,800 Speaker 1: circle circles, circle circle circles inside of circles exactly. Now. 169 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:43,360 Speaker 1: In order to codify some of these rituals and established 170 00:09:43,400 --> 00:09:46,960 Speaker 1: standards for his new organization, Simmons published the KKKS Holy 171 00:09:46,960 --> 00:09:49,920 Speaker 1: Book in nine guys want to guess what it was? Called? 172 00:09:50,679 --> 00:09:59,920 Speaker 1: The uh Clanmicon, the tone of the the Martian demon 173 00:10:00,400 --> 00:10:14,160 Speaker 1: clanonomy Goblin. What is it? The Kloranl's that's so bad. 174 00:10:15,120 --> 00:10:19,400 Speaker 1: You can find the whole chloron online. It's it's it 175 00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:24,920 Speaker 1: is beyond parody. Everything about this episode is beyond parody. 176 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:27,000 Speaker 1: I'm just I can't tell you how excited I am 177 00:10:28,160 --> 00:10:32,200 Speaker 1: literally jumping out of his now. Yeah again, you can 178 00:10:32,240 --> 00:10:34,200 Speaker 1: read it for yourself if you decide that as an 179 00:10:34,200 --> 00:10:37,040 Speaker 1: experience that will spark joy in your life. It is online. 180 00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:39,920 Speaker 1: I'll put the link in the thing. It's all there now. 181 00:10:39,960 --> 00:10:43,400 Speaker 1: The Kloran promises education in character spelled with the K 182 00:10:43,520 --> 00:10:46,559 Speaker 1: and no age, honor and duty, not spelling, though not 183 00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:51,400 Speaker 1: definitely not spelling never been one of the KKK strong points. 184 00:10:52,040 --> 00:10:54,640 Speaker 1: To give you some info on the organization's founding principles, 185 00:10:54,840 --> 00:10:59,319 Speaker 1: I would like to read y'all the Ku Klux Creed. Yeah, 186 00:10:59,559 --> 00:11:05,080 Speaker 1: of course, of course it's stilled with a K. We 187 00:11:05,440 --> 00:11:07,600 Speaker 1: The Order of the Knights of the Ku Klux Klan 188 00:11:07,920 --> 00:11:11,640 Speaker 1: reverentially acknowledge the majesty and supremacy of the Divine Being, 189 00:11:11,679 --> 00:11:15,000 Speaker 1: and recognize the goodness and providence of the same. We 190 00:11:15,080 --> 00:11:17,640 Speaker 1: recognize our relation to the government of the United States 191 00:11:17,679 --> 00:11:21,120 Speaker 1: of America, the supremacy of its constitution, the Union of States, 192 00:11:21,120 --> 00:11:24,440 Speaker 1: they're under and the constitutional laws thereof, And we shall 193 00:11:24,520 --> 00:11:27,360 Speaker 1: ever be ever devoted to the sublime principles of a 194 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:30,679 Speaker 1: pure Americanism and valiant to the defense of its ideals 195 00:11:30,679 --> 00:11:33,960 Speaker 1: and institutions. We avowed the distinction between the races of 196 00:11:34,000 --> 00:11:37,120 Speaker 1: mankind as same has been decreed by the Creator, and 197 00:11:37,160 --> 00:11:39,320 Speaker 1: we shall ever be true to the faithful maintenance of 198 00:11:39,360 --> 00:11:43,600 Speaker 1: white supremacy, and will strenuously oppose any compromise thereof in 199 00:11:43,679 --> 00:11:52,400 Speaker 1: any and all things by the Creator. Citation needed. One 200 00:11:52,440 --> 00:11:55,120 Speaker 1: of the things that has pointed out in the fantastic 201 00:11:55,240 --> 00:11:58,240 Speaker 1: Linda Gordon book The Second Coming of the KKK is 202 00:11:58,280 --> 00:12:01,920 Speaker 1: that this was not radical the time, the KKK was 203 00:12:01,920 --> 00:12:04,640 Speaker 1: speaking very much to the majority of white Americans, and 204 00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:08,000 Speaker 1: that is very important for everything that comes. The ideology 205 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:09,800 Speaker 1: of this group is not fringe in any way, shape 206 00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:12,360 Speaker 1: or form. They're preaching to the choir. They are not 207 00:12:12,480 --> 00:12:15,720 Speaker 1: radicalizing people, and that's critical. No one's getting radicalized here. 208 00:12:15,800 --> 00:12:17,719 Speaker 1: Everyone's a white supremacist while I'm gonna start a white 209 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:22,520 Speaker 1: supremacy group. Yeah. Now, about two thirds of the Kloran 210 00:12:23,080 --> 00:12:26,240 Speaker 1: is made up of incredibly dense, utterly preposterous ceremonies. I'm 211 00:12:26,240 --> 00:12:28,599 Speaker 1: going to read a quick and random exerpt from the 212 00:12:28,679 --> 00:12:32,480 Speaker 1: clans naturalization ritual A k A. Their induction of new members, 213 00:12:32,559 --> 00:12:34,480 Speaker 1: so you can have an understanding of the special tenor 214 00:12:34,520 --> 00:12:37,720 Speaker 1: of this ni unreadable tone. Cody, you look so excited. 215 00:12:38,400 --> 00:12:42,400 Speaker 1: I'm going to read all the titles. So starting off, 216 00:12:42,440 --> 00:12:46,839 Speaker 1: we have the Clad speaking with K L A D D. 217 00:12:47,520 --> 00:12:50,400 Speaker 1: Were the aliens from the world of selfishness and fraternal 218 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:54,600 Speaker 1: alienation prompted by unselfish motive desire the honor of citizenship 219 00:12:54,640 --> 00:12:58,040 Speaker 1: in the invisible empire and the fellowship of klansmen, to 220 00:12:58,160 --> 00:13:01,959 Speaker 1: which the klexter responds, Has your party been selected with care? 221 00:13:02,360 --> 00:13:05,920 Speaker 1: To which the Clad responds. These men are known or 222 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:14,040 Speaker 1: vouched for by klansmen in clonclave as symboled clon. The 223 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:19,200 Speaker 1: Cluxter responds, have they the marks? The Clad asks or says. 224 00:13:19,320 --> 00:13:21,719 Speaker 1: The distinguishing marks of a klansmen are not found in 225 00:13:21,760 --> 00:13:24,880 Speaker 1: the fiber of his garments or his social or financial standing, 226 00:13:25,160 --> 00:13:28,920 Speaker 1: but are spiritual, namely, a chivalric head, a compassionate heart, 227 00:13:29,080 --> 00:13:31,559 Speaker 1: a prudent tongue, and a courageous will, all devoted to 228 00:13:31,600 --> 00:13:33,960 Speaker 1: our country, our clan, our homes in each other. These 229 00:13:33,960 --> 00:13:37,000 Speaker 1: are the distinguishing marks of the klansmen, Oh, faithful Clxter, 230 00:13:37,440 --> 00:13:42,800 Speaker 1: and these men claim the marks. The Clxter next says, 231 00:13:43,760 --> 00:13:46,160 Speaker 1: what if one of your party should prove himself a traitor, 232 00:13:46,480 --> 00:13:48,880 Speaker 1: to which the claud says, he would be immediately banished 233 00:13:48,880 --> 00:13:51,400 Speaker 1: and disgrace from the invisible empire without fear or favor. 234 00:13:51,480 --> 00:13:55,160 Speaker 1: Conscience would tenaciously torment him, Remorse would repeatedly revile him, 235 00:13:55,280 --> 00:13:58,800 Speaker 1: and direful things would befall him. The cluster asks, do 236 00:13:58,920 --> 00:14:01,959 Speaker 1: they know all this? The claud says, all this, they 237 00:14:02,000 --> 00:14:05,520 Speaker 1: now know, they have heard, and they must heed. Klexter says, 238 00:14:05,640 --> 00:14:09,520 Speaker 1: faithful clad, you speak the truth. I'm gonna be gonna 239 00:14:09,520 --> 00:14:11,280 Speaker 1: be a lot of caves. It's gonna be a lot 240 00:14:11,320 --> 00:14:15,600 Speaker 1: of kys going on, a bunch of bunch of real dorms. 241 00:14:15,720 --> 00:14:17,960 Speaker 1: It's not even that racist, Like there's a little bit 242 00:14:17,960 --> 00:14:20,880 Speaker 1: about white supremacy in there, but it's mostly just really 243 00:14:20,960 --> 00:14:26,520 Speaker 1: dense nonsense rituals, likening sprint here and there like you 244 00:14:26,600 --> 00:14:32,240 Speaker 1: do with cilantro. Yeah. Yeah, Now, the first two thirds 245 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:34,400 Speaker 1: or so of the Kloran are made up of frustrating, 246 00:14:34,400 --> 00:14:37,320 Speaker 1: stupid rituals. How you open and closed meetings etcetera. Then 247 00:14:37,400 --> 00:14:39,600 Speaker 1: at the end of the book, Simmons wrote a lecture. 248 00:14:39,920 --> 00:14:42,360 Speaker 1: It reads like a particularly bad D and D source 249 00:14:42,360 --> 00:14:45,120 Speaker 1: book written by a racist. Here's him describing the South 250 00:14:45,160 --> 00:14:48,520 Speaker 1: prior to the rise of the First Clan. Ignorance, lust 251 00:14:48,560 --> 00:14:51,200 Speaker 1: and hate, all capitalized sees the reigns of the state, 252 00:14:51,320 --> 00:14:55,240 Speaker 1: capitalized and riot, rapine and universal ruin reigns supreme. The 253 00:14:55,280 --> 00:14:57,760 Speaker 1: highest form of cultured society was thrust down at its 254 00:14:57,800 --> 00:15:00,960 Speaker 1: noble neck, was forced under the iron heel of pernicious passion, 255 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:04,400 Speaker 1: who yielded a potent scepter of inquisitorial oppression, and the 256 00:15:04,480 --> 00:15:07,560 Speaker 1: very blood of the Caucasian race was seriously threatened with 257 00:15:07,640 --> 00:15:11,560 Speaker 1: everlasting contamination. I would have been a would have been 258 00:15:11,560 --> 00:15:14,240 Speaker 1: a pretty good clan. Later back, Yeah, you really really, 259 00:15:14,360 --> 00:15:17,800 Speaker 1: I got that voice down, I know it. Don't don't 260 00:15:17,840 --> 00:15:21,800 Speaker 1: explore that too much spoil We're about to get to 261 00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:27,000 Speaker 1: in Evans really prominently here. Yeah. An important thing to 262 00:15:27,040 --> 00:15:29,600 Speaker 1: realize about the nineteen twenties clan is that while they 263 00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:32,240 Speaker 1: were racist, they were first and foremost a social order. 264 00:15:32,800 --> 00:15:35,240 Speaker 1: Their meetings probably weren't any more racist than the average 265 00:15:35,280 --> 00:15:37,520 Speaker 1: Masonic meeting at the time. We have minutes from a 266 00:15:37,560 --> 00:15:41,080 Speaker 1: lot of individual clavern meetings. Individual groups were called a clavern, 267 00:15:41,520 --> 00:15:44,000 Speaker 1: and many of them never because they were so cool. 268 00:15:44,360 --> 00:15:46,280 Speaker 1: Lynda Gordon points that that many of them never even 269 00:15:46,320 --> 00:15:48,720 Speaker 1: brought up racial subjects other than in like passing. So 270 00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:50,960 Speaker 1: the Second Clan was racist, but not more racist than 271 00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:54,080 Speaker 1: mainstream society. It didn't stand out now. Simmons ran the 272 00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:56,680 Speaker 1: clan for five years, and as with every other endeavor 273 00:15:56,680 --> 00:15:59,320 Speaker 1: in his life, he was bad at it. During his reign, 274 00:15:59,400 --> 00:16:01,240 Speaker 1: the group had only one public outing, a march of 275 00:16:01,280 --> 00:16:03,880 Speaker 1: the Veterans Parade that included twenty black men. He paid 276 00:16:03,920 --> 00:16:09,440 Speaker 1: to put on robes in order to pat out his numbers, 277 00:16:09,480 --> 00:16:12,160 Speaker 1: like whatever you do, do not take this, not take 278 00:16:14,760 --> 00:16:16,600 Speaker 1: but as a point, like it's not the racism is 279 00:16:16,640 --> 00:16:18,360 Speaker 1: in the focus, because he's clearly like, wow, I just 280 00:16:18,360 --> 00:16:20,920 Speaker 1: want us to look big, right, want my club to 281 00:16:20,920 --> 00:16:23,200 Speaker 1: be cool. I want everyone to show up my cool club. 282 00:16:23,320 --> 00:16:26,520 Speaker 1: That's very cool, very cool. So he did make enough 283 00:16:26,560 --> 00:16:29,800 Speaker 1: money to buy Baptist Lanier University in Atlanta because it 284 00:16:29,840 --> 00:16:31,520 Speaker 1: was heavily in debt, and he tried to turn it 285 00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:34,760 Speaker 1: into a whites only university for racists. Twenty five people 286 00:16:34,880 --> 00:16:38,280 Speaker 1: enrolled and it went bankrupt. So Simmons was forced to 287 00:16:38,320 --> 00:16:43,000 Speaker 1: go looking for help. Fraud universities, huhd universities. So Simmons, 288 00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:45,320 Speaker 1: he's going bankrupt the KKKS and severe debt. He's got 289 00:16:45,320 --> 00:16:47,160 Speaker 1: to go find help. And he found it when he 290 00:16:47,200 --> 00:16:51,320 Speaker 1: met two veterans of the fairly new PR industry, Elizabeth 291 00:16:51,400 --> 00:16:55,200 Speaker 1: Tyler and Edward Young Clark. They ran a publicity agency 292 00:16:55,320 --> 00:16:57,720 Speaker 1: that had already helped the Anti Saloon League on its 293 00:16:57,800 --> 00:17:00,800 Speaker 1: rise to prominence. Clark's dad had been a Federate colonel 294 00:17:00,840 --> 00:17:04,440 Speaker 1: and on the Atlantic Constitution and influential newspaper. Elizabeth was 295 00:17:04,520 --> 00:17:06,880 Speaker 1: his wife. She'd grown up poor and married at fifteen. 296 00:17:06,920 --> 00:17:08,399 Speaker 1: And if you ignore the whole helping to found the 297 00:17:08,440 --> 00:17:11,800 Speaker 1: KKK of it all, she's a pretty inspiring feminist story. 298 00:17:12,080 --> 00:17:14,040 Speaker 1: It's hard to know that other party. It's really harding 299 00:17:14,400 --> 00:17:18,440 Speaker 1: clan part. Here's the second coming of the KKK quote. 300 00:17:19,040 --> 00:17:22,119 Speaker 1: The team saw a lucrative client and Simmons's new clan group. 301 00:17:22,280 --> 00:17:25,040 Speaker 1: The minute we said ku klux, Tyler recalled editors from 302 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:28,040 Speaker 1: all over the United States began literally pressing us for publicity. 303 00:17:28,240 --> 00:17:30,600 Speaker 1: By nineteen twenty, she and Clark had convinced Simmons that 304 00:17:30,600 --> 00:17:33,400 Speaker 1: they could grow his new clan, that it had national potential. 305 00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:36,800 Speaker 1: To realize that potential, it had to multiply its bigotry. 306 00:17:36,960 --> 00:17:39,520 Speaker 1: The alleged threat from black people would not reverberate among 307 00:17:39,640 --> 00:17:42,240 Speaker 1: Northerners at a time when so few African Americans lived 308 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:45,520 Speaker 1: outside the Southeast, so Simmons hired them, signing a contract 309 00:17:45,520 --> 00:17:48,159 Speaker 1: that gave Clark and Tyler an astonishing eighty percent of 310 00:17:48,160 --> 00:17:51,000 Speaker 1: any revenue they brought in from new recruits. Since Simmons 311 00:17:51,000 --> 00:17:53,440 Speaker 1: had gotten nowhere with his new organization, he undoubtedly thought 312 00:17:53,440 --> 00:17:55,320 Speaker 1: that he had nothing to lose in giving them fourfeits 313 00:17:55,400 --> 00:17:57,760 Speaker 1: of anything they could bring in. Tyler and Clark became 314 00:17:57,800 --> 00:18:00,920 Speaker 1: in practice head of the clan for two years now. 315 00:18:01,119 --> 00:18:04,280 Speaker 1: They turned Simmons into a polished speaker, engendering and exploiting fear. 316 00:18:04,320 --> 00:18:07,040 Speaker 1: He would warn that degenerative forces were destroying the American 317 00:18:07,080 --> 00:18:09,199 Speaker 1: way of life. These were not only black people, but 318 00:18:09,280 --> 00:18:12,880 Speaker 1: also Jews, Catholics, and immigrants, the big city dwellers who 319 00:18:12,880 --> 00:18:16,600 Speaker 1: were tempting Americans with immoral pleasures sex, alcohol, in music, 320 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:22,800 Speaker 1: notably jazz. Choice of music there, interesting choice of music. 321 00:18:22,800 --> 00:18:26,240 Speaker 1: We're almost to the big reveal very excited. Like the 322 00:18:26,280 --> 00:18:29,560 Speaker 1: original clan, the Second KKK used newspapers to stoke the 323 00:18:29,560 --> 00:18:33,040 Speaker 1: buzz around their organization. Simmons would give exclusive interviews where 324 00:18:33,080 --> 00:18:35,240 Speaker 1: he came across as super suave and cool, and the 325 00:18:35,320 --> 00:18:39,440 Speaker 1: clans membership would grow. Newspapers ran advertisements that included KKK 326 00:18:39,600 --> 00:18:43,520 Speaker 1: application forms, press releases ran like rain on front pages 327 00:18:43,520 --> 00:18:47,120 Speaker 1: of the nation. By the summer of nineteen twenty one, 328 00:18:47,200 --> 00:18:50,040 Speaker 1: the new KKK reported a membership of eight hundred and 329 00:18:50,119 --> 00:18:53,000 Speaker 1: fifty thousand. Now this is almost certainly an exaggeration, but 330 00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:55,440 Speaker 1: the real number was surely in the hundreds of thousands. 331 00:18:55,480 --> 00:18:58,920 Speaker 1: Incredible growth over roughly a year of PR blitzes. And 332 00:18:59,000 --> 00:19:01,840 Speaker 1: this is where it gets fun. The story sort of splits. 333 00:19:02,119 --> 00:19:04,159 Speaker 1: One half is the tale of the various assault and 334 00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:06,800 Speaker 1: murders and attempted political coups by clansmen over the next 335 00:19:06,800 --> 00:19:10,000 Speaker 1: several years, and the other story, the bigger story, is 336 00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:14,119 Speaker 1: the tale of the clan's true purpose. It was an MLM, 337 00:19:14,160 --> 00:19:17,639 Speaker 1: a multi level marketing scheme. It was amid the KKK, 338 00:19:17,840 --> 00:19:25,240 Speaker 1: the Second KKK. It was a motherfucking cayramids. I'm so excited. 339 00:19:25,920 --> 00:19:29,240 Speaker 1: Wait if he didn't literally read the headlines like the 340 00:19:29,320 --> 00:19:35,119 Speaker 1: dapper k there's a shipload of those. Yeah. Now we're 341 00:19:35,160 --> 00:19:37,840 Speaker 1: gonna talk about how the clan became a pyramid scheme, 342 00:19:38,160 --> 00:19:40,439 Speaker 1: but first we're gonna talk about some things that are 343 00:19:40,520 --> 00:19:44,720 Speaker 1: legitimate products and services, the products and services that advertise 344 00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:51,720 Speaker 1: on this show and or content platform. M hmm, I 345 00:19:51,880 --> 00:20:03,160 Speaker 1: did it by Derrito's We're back. We just had a 346 00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:06,680 Speaker 1: handful of tapatio de ritos, which are spicing our way 347 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:10,520 Speaker 1: through this tale of racism and profiting off of phrase 348 00:20:11,480 --> 00:20:16,600 Speaker 1: so grifting racists. What excuse me, M L limbs in 349 00:20:16,640 --> 00:20:22,560 Speaker 1: the far right, I am surprised. I'm going to leave 350 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:26,320 Speaker 1: right now because I'm so spurious. I've had a great 351 00:20:26,320 --> 00:20:29,320 Speaker 1: Harvard paper called Hatred and Profits under the Hood of 352 00:20:29,359 --> 00:20:31,560 Speaker 1: the Ku Klux Klan. I'm gonna quote from that now. 353 00:20:33,040 --> 00:20:35,200 Speaker 1: The organizational structure of the Ku Klux Klan in the 354 00:20:35,240 --> 00:20:38,280 Speaker 1: nineteen twenties, designed by the Propagation Department, was a hybrid 355 00:20:38,320 --> 00:20:40,680 Speaker 1: that combined features of other fraternal orders with a multi 356 00:20:40,720 --> 00:20:44,160 Speaker 1: level marketing firm, with two distinct sets of reporting hierarchies 357 00:20:44,160 --> 00:20:47,720 Speaker 1: that operated more or less independently. One hierarchy was made 358 00:20:47,760 --> 00:20:49,680 Speaker 1: up of the clan's members from the lowliest rank and 359 00:20:49,720 --> 00:20:52,720 Speaker 1: file to the highest leadership. This hierarchy corresponds to the 360 00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:55,240 Speaker 1: social club aspect of the clan, the arm that intimidated 361 00:20:55,240 --> 00:20:58,440 Speaker 1: the blacks and foreigners and attempted to influence political outcomes. 362 00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:02,199 Speaker 1: In addition, however, was a nearly invisible parallel hierarchy of 363 00:21:02,240 --> 00:21:05,680 Speaker 1: clan recruiters organized like a modern multi level marketing firm, 364 00:21:05,720 --> 00:21:08,639 Speaker 1: which represents the financial arm of the plan. This highly 365 00:21:08,640 --> 00:21:11,600 Speaker 1: incentivized sales force was responsible for recruiting new members to 366 00:21:11,640 --> 00:21:14,520 Speaker 1: the clan, and almost all of the financial rewards accrued 367 00:21:14,560 --> 00:21:17,040 Speaker 1: to either the handful of top leaders or the individuals 368 00:21:17,040 --> 00:21:20,840 Speaker 1: in this auxiliary hierarchy. It was a money making scheme 369 00:21:20,880 --> 00:21:24,399 Speaker 1: made up like PR hacks is fascinating. Yeah, it's sucking wild, right, 370 00:21:25,520 --> 00:21:30,680 Speaker 1: I hadn't have so many emotions, some of them confect 371 00:21:30,760 --> 00:21:34,119 Speaker 1: with each other. Uh, this is amazing. It's a great scam. 372 00:21:34,600 --> 00:21:39,040 Speaker 1: It's an objectively great scam effect an effective scam. Um. 373 00:21:39,240 --> 00:21:42,680 Speaker 1: Take note. Clark and Tyler, the PR agents who made 374 00:21:42,720 --> 00:21:45,679 Speaker 1: the KKK grade again, brought in more than eight hundred 375 00:21:45,680 --> 00:21:48,679 Speaker 1: and fifty thousand dollars in their first fifteen months. That 376 00:21:48,800 --> 00:21:53,240 Speaker 1: is roughly ten million dollars and slightly over a year. Now, 377 00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:55,560 Speaker 1: Simmons got a much smaller cut of this, but he's 378 00:21:55,560 --> 00:21:57,400 Speaker 1: still got rich. They even gave him a twenty five 379 00:21:57,440 --> 00:22:00,560 Speaker 1: grand bonus, which was like three dollars. Good for him. 380 00:22:00,600 --> 00:22:06,520 Speaker 1: He he was like six years you know. Now, this 381 00:22:06,600 --> 00:22:08,720 Speaker 1: money came from a variety of places, which I will 382 00:22:08,760 --> 00:22:10,280 Speaker 1: get to in a second, but it's important to know 383 00:22:10,320 --> 00:22:12,439 Speaker 1: that Simmons, Clark, and Tyler were all pushed out by 384 00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:15,760 Speaker 1: nineteen two. Simmons was bought out and another new guy 385 00:22:15,840 --> 00:22:18,679 Speaker 1: named Hiram Evans was made the Imperial Wizard. He'd been 386 00:22:18,720 --> 00:22:20,919 Speaker 1: hired as a recruiter initially, but once he was the 387 00:22:20,920 --> 00:22:23,399 Speaker 1: Imperial Wizard, he was able to fire Clark and Tyler, 388 00:22:23,520 --> 00:22:26,920 Speaker 1: which he did so. The people responsible for actually getting 389 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:29,960 Speaker 1: the second KKK off the ground weren't around for most 390 00:22:30,000 --> 00:22:32,159 Speaker 1: of what happens next, but they set all of this 391 00:22:32,200 --> 00:22:34,280 Speaker 1: into motion and they got rich off of it. The 392 00:22:34,400 --> 00:22:37,159 Speaker 1: KKK would have died with Simmons indebted and disgraced, but 393 00:22:37,200 --> 00:22:41,000 Speaker 1: that is distinctly not what happened. These two pr wonderkins 394 00:22:41,040 --> 00:22:44,000 Speaker 1: had created an incredible profit making model, one that would 395 00:22:44,000 --> 00:22:46,240 Speaker 1: act as a cash spigot for a bunch of greedy 396 00:22:46,320 --> 00:22:50,280 Speaker 1: racists and caned millions of Americans in the process, so 397 00:22:50,600 --> 00:22:54,160 Speaker 1: tail as oldest time, tailor as oldest time. First off, 398 00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:56,879 Speaker 1: here's how the clan was organized is from that Harvard 399 00:22:56,920 --> 00:23:00,800 Speaker 1: paper quote. The Grand Wizard or Emperor just the nominal 400 00:23:00,880 --> 00:23:03,199 Speaker 1: chair of the body, with the Imperial Wizard acting as 401 00:23:03,240 --> 00:23:08,160 Speaker 1: the chief executive and aided by a fifteen member Imperial Cloncilium. 402 00:23:08,200 --> 00:23:12,879 Speaker 1: These included the Claliff first vice President, the classic second 403 00:23:12,960 --> 00:23:17,760 Speaker 1: vice president of the Cloak card lock Shore, the clud Chaplain, 404 00:23:18,080 --> 00:23:23,480 Speaker 1: the click Rap Secretary, the Clayby Treasurer, the Clad Clayby, 405 00:23:25,119 --> 00:23:29,320 Speaker 1: the clad Conductor, the clarago a tin Man inner Guard, 406 00:23:29,520 --> 00:23:33,359 Speaker 1: the Clexter, the outer Guard, the Clonsole General Counsel, the 407 00:23:33,480 --> 00:23:37,840 Speaker 1: Nighthawk Courier, and the four cloakn auditors. These individuals were 408 00:23:37,880 --> 00:23:40,959 Speaker 1: responsible for keeping the clan's books, providing in house legal advice, 409 00:23:41,040 --> 00:23:44,800 Speaker 1: and serving as a clan cabinet. Did you like bananas 410 00:23:45,000 --> 00:23:49,000 Speaker 1: plug racism into like a random letter generator and just 411 00:23:49,200 --> 00:23:52,960 Speaker 1: like what some of those are even based off real word? 412 00:23:53,320 --> 00:23:58,040 Speaker 1: What is the click rap like claf okay, like you 413 00:23:58,160 --> 00:24:03,760 Speaker 1: clearly the chlorine? What the fund is a clud or 414 00:24:03,960 --> 00:24:09,840 Speaker 1: I'm still stuck on the cleat um. I'm also ashamed 415 00:24:09,840 --> 00:24:14,280 Speaker 1: to share an initial with this. It has been ruined 416 00:24:14,359 --> 00:24:16,600 Speaker 1: for me. Yeah, you only got one K. Though you 417 00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:19,120 Speaker 1: only got one K. If you were the KKK, you'd 418 00:24:19,160 --> 00:24:28,399 Speaker 1: have like a shiploaded ka clad clo. Yeah no, and 419 00:24:28,480 --> 00:24:31,600 Speaker 1: that's still one shy and I don't even want to 420 00:24:31,640 --> 00:24:34,760 Speaker 1: go down that. Back back to the story, the clan's 421 00:24:34,800 --> 00:24:37,760 Speaker 1: worldwide operations were split up into several realms, one for 422 00:24:37,800 --> 00:24:41,199 Speaker 1: each state, each run by a Grand Dragon. The states, 423 00:24:42,520 --> 00:24:45,440 Speaker 1: the states, I don't know. Man. At the bottom of 424 00:24:45,480 --> 00:24:48,679 Speaker 1: the organization were the Ghouls, organized into claverns, which were 425 00:24:48,680 --> 00:24:59,920 Speaker 1: headed by Exalted cyclopses. Not did you see does a 426 00:25:00,000 --> 00:25:04,439 Speaker 1: the goals Exalted cycles The Exalted Cyclops heads a clavern. Yeahs, 427 00:25:04,560 --> 00:25:09,200 Speaker 1: like like they know, like like gnomes, Like like why 428 00:25:09,200 --> 00:25:15,760 Speaker 1: would you just like say you were goals. Goals make 429 00:25:15,840 --> 00:25:19,240 Speaker 1: up a clavin Googles, Googles make up a clavern. There 430 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:21,440 Speaker 1: the rank and file of the clansmen, sorry, I'm sorry, 431 00:25:21,640 --> 00:25:25,600 Speaker 1: and they're headed by a grand Grand Cyclops. Is absolutely 432 00:25:25,640 --> 00:25:27,960 Speaker 1: more than I ever wanted to know. I Exalted Cyclops, 433 00:25:28,280 --> 00:25:30,160 Speaker 1: these are like getting get that right to these things. 434 00:25:30,200 --> 00:25:33,520 Speaker 1: I'm never going to forget and I'm not copy about it. Yeah, 435 00:25:33,520 --> 00:25:35,919 Speaker 1: you know it's stuck there forever. Now. Yeah, if you 436 00:25:35,960 --> 00:25:39,320 Speaker 1: think about the KKK is a political or militant organization. 437 00:25:39,800 --> 00:25:42,399 Speaker 1: Outside of the silly names, this structure makes sense. But 438 00:25:42,440 --> 00:25:45,320 Speaker 1: once you understand the financial dimensions, well, it becomes very 439 00:25:45,359 --> 00:25:49,320 Speaker 1: clearly a Pyramids game quote. Clan members generated an enormous 440 00:25:49,359 --> 00:25:52,480 Speaker 1: amount of revenue each Google paid a ten dollar initiation 441 00:25:52,520 --> 00:25:54,720 Speaker 1: fee equivalent to a hundred and ten and two thousand 442 00:25:54,760 --> 00:25:57,920 Speaker 1: eleven dollars six fifty to buy an official clan robe, 443 00:25:57,920 --> 00:26:00,400 Speaker 1: which costs roughly two dollars to make, an annual membership 444 00:26:00,440 --> 00:26:02,560 Speaker 1: fee of five dollars, an imperial tax of a dollar 445 00:26:02,640 --> 00:26:05,480 Speaker 1: eighty and Klansmen were also encouraged to purchase other clan 446 00:26:05,560 --> 00:26:10,520 Speaker 1: sanctioned merchandise, including swords, bibles, helmets, dry cleaning, and life insurance. 447 00:26:10,840 --> 00:26:13,560 Speaker 1: Joined the clan was not a cheap undertaking. Using the 448 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:16,120 Speaker 1: numbers above, the first year of membership cost twenty three 449 00:26:16,200 --> 00:26:18,639 Speaker 1: thirty roughly two hundred and fifty dollars in two thousand 450 00:26:18,680 --> 00:26:22,440 Speaker 1: eleven dollars, and subsequent years were six dollars and eighty 451 00:26:22,520 --> 00:26:25,840 Speaker 1: cents approximately seventy five dollars in two thousand eleven dollars. 452 00:26:26,200 --> 00:26:29,560 Speaker 1: At its peak in nineteen four, the clan conservatively generated 453 00:26:29,600 --> 00:26:33,000 Speaker 1: annual revenue from all sources of at least twenty five million, 454 00:26:33,240 --> 00:26:36,560 Speaker 1: equivalent to three hundred million in current dollars. Only a 455 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:39,560 Speaker 1: small portion of this revenue was required to fund basic operations. 456 00:26:39,640 --> 00:26:42,320 Speaker 1: It was a Pyramids game, it was it was. It 457 00:26:42,400 --> 00:26:44,600 Speaker 1: was a racist Pyramids game. And I'm sorry. The dry 458 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:48,200 Speaker 1: cleaning was that for the rope. You gotta keep those 459 00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:50,680 Speaker 1: white robes clean. You ever worn a white robe, quick, Katie, 460 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:55,199 Speaker 1: it's gonna haven't you know? I haven't a white as 461 00:26:55,560 --> 00:26:57,840 Speaker 1: about it though. Yeah. The problems that come from wearing 462 00:26:58,520 --> 00:27:03,119 Speaker 1: drink shoppy one you like, bloody up somebody everything, It 463 00:27:03,240 --> 00:27:06,760 Speaker 1: shows everything everything, especially racist. Where the swords like Brandon, 464 00:27:07,359 --> 00:27:14,080 Speaker 1: It's like yeah, yeah, there were course there were branded swords. 465 00:27:14,160 --> 00:27:18,280 Speaker 1: Fullest question. This economic growth was possible thanks to an 466 00:27:18,359 --> 00:27:21,480 Speaker 1: enormous sales force started nineteen twenty one by r PR 467 00:27:21,560 --> 00:27:24,800 Speaker 1: Friends and soon over a thousand people strong. Each Grand Dragon, 468 00:27:24,920 --> 00:27:27,120 Speaker 1: the state clan heads got to fifty out of each 469 00:27:27,160 --> 00:27:29,960 Speaker 1: ten dollar membership fee. Members also paid a one dollar 470 00:27:30,040 --> 00:27:32,560 Speaker 1: yearly tax, which went to the Grand Dragon. Fifty cents 471 00:27:32,560 --> 00:27:34,560 Speaker 1: of every six dollar and fifty cent clan roade went 472 00:27:34,560 --> 00:27:36,640 Speaker 1: to him as well, So the Grand Dragons make bank, 473 00:27:36,720 --> 00:27:38,960 Speaker 1: and so did the sales force. The US is split 474 00:27:38,960 --> 00:27:41,720 Speaker 1: into nine domains, with a goblin in charge of recruitment. 475 00:27:41,760 --> 00:27:45,159 Speaker 1: For each, the goblin hires a King Klegal who hires 476 00:27:45,160 --> 00:27:47,680 Speaker 1: a bunch of Klegal's the regular grunt sales force of 477 00:27:47,720 --> 00:27:50,440 Speaker 1: the endeavor. They made four dollars off of each membership. 478 00:27:50,800 --> 00:27:53,400 Speaker 1: The remaining three fifty was sent up the recruiting structure, 479 00:27:53,440 --> 00:27:55,200 Speaker 1: with the person in charge of sales in the state, 480 00:27:55,240 --> 00:27:58,440 Speaker 1: the King Klegal getting a dollar, the regional sales overseer 481 00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:02,160 Speaker 1: a great Goblin, got five cents, the national sales overseer 482 00:28:02,200 --> 00:28:04,760 Speaker 1: and Imperial Kleigal got a dollar twenty five, and the 483 00:28:04,760 --> 00:28:07,000 Speaker 1: two most powerful men in the clan, the Imperial Wizard 484 00:28:07,000 --> 00:28:09,679 Speaker 1: and the Grand Wizard, split se They were doing that 485 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:12,560 Speaker 1: for the whole country. Kleigels were paid for recruiting new members, 486 00:28:12,560 --> 00:28:15,080 Speaker 1: and once someone joined, none of the ongoing revenues went 487 00:28:15,080 --> 00:28:18,560 Speaker 1: to the sales force, so the big cheeses. The ongoing 488 00:28:18,560 --> 00:28:21,200 Speaker 1: revenue is where it's at, so the salesforce gets a 489 00:28:21,240 --> 00:28:23,680 Speaker 1: cut of the initial went whenever recruits someone and then 490 00:28:23,680 --> 00:28:26,320 Speaker 1: the big cheeses get anything else that they buy. So 491 00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:30,600 Speaker 1: the Invisible Empire sold robes, flags, dry cleaning services, candy, 492 00:28:31,000 --> 00:28:32,959 Speaker 1: every kind of thing. Imagine, I'm gonna quote again from 493 00:28:32,960 --> 00:28:35,359 Speaker 1: the second Coming of the Ku klux Klan quote a 494 00:28:35,480 --> 00:28:37,960 Speaker 1: klux ER's nifty knife every word in that has felt 495 00:28:38,000 --> 00:28:40,280 Speaker 1: with a K, which was described as a quote real 496 00:28:40,360 --> 00:28:45,360 Speaker 1: hundred percent knife for hundred percent Americans could be bought 497 00:28:45,360 --> 00:28:48,080 Speaker 1: for a dollar five. A member could buy a broach 498 00:28:48,120 --> 00:28:51,320 Speaker 1: for his wife, A zircon studded fiery cross. A larger 499 00:28:51,400 --> 00:28:53,080 Speaker 1: cross that a man could wear on the watch chain 500 00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:55,760 Speaker 1: he displayed across his chest cost two ninety. For only 501 00:28:55,840 --> 00:28:58,760 Speaker 1: five dollars, you could get allegedly a fourteen carrot gold 502 00:28:58,840 --> 00:29:01,000 Speaker 1: filled ring with a tin care It's solid gold clan 503 00:29:01,120 --> 00:29:04,200 Speaker 1: emblem on a fiery red stone. Also for sale, we're 504 00:29:04,240 --> 00:29:08,120 Speaker 1: phonograph records and player piano rolls with clan songs. Advertisements 505 00:29:08,120 --> 00:29:10,480 Speaker 1: for this merchandise appeared to newspapers across the country and 506 00:29:10,480 --> 00:29:14,479 Speaker 1: in flyers at large clon vocations. The Clans for Profit 507 00:29:14,520 --> 00:29:17,320 Speaker 1: Life Insurance Plan claimed three million dollars with the policies 508 00:29:17,320 --> 00:29:20,600 Speaker 1: in nine, a dubious figure. It claimed to provide burial 509 00:29:20,640 --> 00:29:23,680 Speaker 1: insurance as well, but the service never actually materialized because 510 00:29:23,680 --> 00:29:28,240 Speaker 1: it was a scamp. Now the KKK also offered a 511 00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:34,960 Speaker 1: spectacular vacation getaway. I found an ad from sometimes It's well, 512 00:29:35,720 --> 00:29:38,160 Speaker 1: just you wait, I'm gonna hand you the ad Katie, 513 00:29:38,160 --> 00:29:40,160 Speaker 1: and you can describe it to the readers. Now. It's 514 00:29:40,160 --> 00:29:42,280 Speaker 1: from some time in the twenties Duke University, which is 515 00:29:42,280 --> 00:29:44,120 Speaker 1: where I found this host. It didn't know exactly win 516 00:29:44,560 --> 00:29:46,520 Speaker 1: and it talks about you know what, I'm just gonna 517 00:29:46,560 --> 00:29:52,560 Speaker 1: I'm just gonna describe this ad Katie, a right to 518 00:29:52,720 --> 00:29:56,160 Speaker 1: all the clans and clansmen of Texas. And then there's 519 00:29:56,200 --> 00:30:00,239 Speaker 1: like a little image it says cool Coast Camp, the 520 00:30:00,240 --> 00:30:03,720 Speaker 1: healthiest road to the coolest summer. Are all those words 521 00:30:03,720 --> 00:30:06,800 Speaker 1: spelled with a K, Cool Coast every yes, every single 522 00:30:06,840 --> 00:30:09,880 Speaker 1: one that you could imagine, and the coolest summer, Cool 523 00:30:09,920 --> 00:30:13,520 Speaker 1: Coast Clan Camp, the healthiest road to the coolest summer. 524 00:30:14,240 --> 00:30:15,840 Speaker 1: To read some of this things, yeah, you're getting a 525 00:30:15,880 --> 00:30:19,000 Speaker 1: little bit of that ad copy. While I greetings we 526 00:30:19,280 --> 00:30:22,440 Speaker 1: the grand Dragons of the Realm of Texas and the 527 00:30:22,440 --> 00:30:25,960 Speaker 1: great Titans of the five Provinces in Texas, Knights of 528 00:30:25,960 --> 00:30:30,120 Speaker 1: the Ku Klux Klan hereby officially endorsed the annexed proposition 529 00:30:30,200 --> 00:30:36,160 Speaker 1: of Klansmen C. T. Gilliam of this is the realm 530 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:40,760 Speaker 1: of Texas, the realm of Texas. Really into that he 531 00:30:40,880 --> 00:30:43,480 Speaker 1: proposes to give a high class service to the Klansmen 532 00:30:43,560 --> 00:30:46,920 Speaker 1: of Texas at a minimum cost. Yeah. Right. That goes 533 00:30:47,000 --> 00:30:52,800 Speaker 1: on back to you what a knife? That says knife? 534 00:30:53,880 --> 00:30:58,040 Speaker 1: You know my favorite things to heart against it being 535 00:30:58,120 --> 00:31:03,000 Speaker 1: like you don't know, you, you don't know, you don't 536 00:31:03,000 --> 00:31:05,720 Speaker 1: know what it's cut. The clan would have hated Swiss, 537 00:31:06,760 --> 00:31:09,360 Speaker 1: They would have hated a swisser because Swiss army knife. 538 00:31:09,360 --> 00:31:13,840 Speaker 1: That's like race mixing for tools. They're a threat to 539 00:31:14,200 --> 00:31:18,160 Speaker 1: knife civilization. Now. The Cool Coast camp AD is a 540 00:31:18,280 --> 00:31:21,000 Speaker 1: really fun document to read. For one thing, it brags 541 00:31:21,080 --> 00:31:25,080 Speaker 1: repeatedly and pointedly about how much shade their beaches because 542 00:31:25,120 --> 00:31:29,960 Speaker 1: everybody is really white. Guess what it recommends as the 543 00:31:30,000 --> 00:31:35,320 Speaker 1: most sensible thing to wear. She a big Mexican sombrero. 544 00:31:36,960 --> 00:31:40,760 Speaker 1: What is that? Like? Those are the exact words, Those 545 00:31:40,760 --> 00:31:49,880 Speaker 1: are the exact words, Mexican sombrero. Oh, there is no 546 00:31:49,920 --> 00:31:52,280 Speaker 1: shortage of bigotry in the ad, but it is kind 547 00:31:52,280 --> 00:31:56,360 Speaker 1: of the classic wholesome, mainstream nineties American bigotry as opposed 548 00:31:56,360 --> 00:31:58,360 Speaker 1: to what we would expect from the clan today. I'm 549 00:31:58,360 --> 00:32:00,840 Speaker 1: going to read, for example, a section idled the family 550 00:32:00,920 --> 00:32:03,480 Speaker 1: that's sort of advertising this camp to the rest of 551 00:32:03,480 --> 00:32:07,200 Speaker 1: the family. Wonderful Mother's This camp spelled with the K 552 00:32:07,680 --> 00:32:11,560 Speaker 1: is deeded to you. So cool, so RESTful, no work whatsoever, 553 00:32:11,680 --> 00:32:15,040 Speaker 1: no drudgery, no worry. The fiery Cross guards you at nights, 554 00:32:15,040 --> 00:32:17,600 Speaker 1: and an officer of the law with the same Christian 555 00:32:17,640 --> 00:32:22,160 Speaker 1: sentiment guards carefully all portals. Beautiful daughter, A beautiful camp 556 00:32:22,240 --> 00:32:26,520 Speaker 1: needs beautiful ornaments, no dust to avoid, shades natural and 557 00:32:26,560 --> 00:32:29,480 Speaker 1: shades artificial to keep away the freckles. Cool with a 558 00:32:29,600 --> 00:32:32,160 Speaker 1: K in every way, the time of your life, and 559 00:32:32,200 --> 00:32:34,960 Speaker 1: all caps. Put a bug in Daddy's ear and hug 560 00:32:35,040 --> 00:32:37,800 Speaker 1: him tight. He will let you come. The sentiment reflected 561 00:32:37,840 --> 00:32:40,600 Speaker 1: through humanity by the rays of the Fiery Cross makes 562 00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:42,320 Speaker 1: you as safe in our camp as at home. And 563 00:32:42,400 --> 00:32:46,280 Speaker 1: mother's arms. Mother's arms is capitalized too. The prize of 564 00:32:46,320 --> 00:32:54,200 Speaker 1: a concrete Lizzie no idea, I have no idea. No. 565 00:32:54,400 --> 00:32:57,240 Speaker 1: The only thing with the sea that spelled with the sea, 566 00:32:57,560 --> 00:33:00,960 Speaker 1: I don't know what the concrete Lizzie is. But that 567 00:33:01,040 --> 00:33:02,960 Speaker 1: was the prize given any person who could find a 568 00:33:02,960 --> 00:33:09,840 Speaker 1: more wonderful spot in America that this is a sex thing. Yes, yes, 569 00:33:10,680 --> 00:33:13,320 Speaker 1: it's a fucking thing. They were all funk guys in 570 00:33:13,400 --> 00:33:23,240 Speaker 1: the K a concrete Lizzie age. Oh no, all right, yeah, 571 00:33:24,840 --> 00:33:30,320 Speaker 1: at a low cost, at an affordable cost cost. It's 572 00:33:30,320 --> 00:33:33,200 Speaker 1: affordable cost because Texas coast is kind of shitty. The 573 00:33:33,200 --> 00:33:36,120 Speaker 1: realm of Texas, Texas does not have a nice coast. 574 00:33:36,160 --> 00:33:39,200 Speaker 1: Speaking as a Texan, don't go to Galveston, all right, 575 00:33:40,720 --> 00:33:45,520 Speaker 1: that wasn't a concern. Good good. The KKK recognized that 576 00:33:45,600 --> 00:33:49,239 Speaker 1: children represented an incredible potential market so far untapped by 577 00:33:49,240 --> 00:33:52,720 Speaker 1: the powers of commercial racism. They opened three auxiliary groups 578 00:33:52,760 --> 00:33:56,320 Speaker 1: for children. The Junior KKK, starting in ninety three, was 579 00:33:56,400 --> 00:33:59,320 Speaker 1: literally just a child's version of the KKK. One new 580 00:33:59,400 --> 00:34:02,240 Speaker 1: Junior k KK chapter announced its opening by blowing a 581 00:34:02,240 --> 00:34:05,320 Speaker 1: horn and lighting across and the leather j on fire. 582 00:34:08,440 --> 00:34:12,959 Speaker 1: Oh no no. For young girls, there was the try 583 00:34:13,040 --> 00:34:15,839 Speaker 1: K club. Club is spelled with the K, modeled after 584 00:34:15,880 --> 00:34:18,440 Speaker 1: popular sororities at the time. Now, there was plenty of 585 00:34:18,560 --> 00:34:22,400 Speaker 1: racism in the try K. Historian Christina du Rocher described 586 00:34:22,440 --> 00:34:25,439 Speaker 1: the central message of their propaganda as quote, white girls 587 00:34:25,480 --> 00:34:28,400 Speaker 1: should remove themselves from contact with all blacks, a passive 588 00:34:28,400 --> 00:34:32,120 Speaker 1: way of preserving white supremacy. But the tri K Club 589 00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:34,880 Speaker 1: was first and foremost a social club. I found an 590 00:34:34,880 --> 00:34:38,360 Speaker 1: illustrated collection of the KKK sheet music on Google Books 591 00:34:38,400 --> 00:34:41,239 Speaker 1: because Internet, and it included the ritual of the tri 592 00:34:41,400 --> 00:34:43,680 Speaker 1: K Club, which seems like it was probably patterned off 593 00:34:43,680 --> 00:34:47,800 Speaker 1: the Cluron. It includes a pledged song of this racism sorority. 594 00:34:47,960 --> 00:34:51,839 Speaker 1: I'm gonna read just the first verse. We pledged you 595 00:34:51,960 --> 00:34:55,000 Speaker 1: our friendship true through happiness and tears. The tie that 596 00:34:55,000 --> 00:34:57,240 Speaker 1: binds our hearts to you will hold throughout the years. 597 00:34:57,400 --> 00:34:59,719 Speaker 1: Beneath this flag that waves, above this cross that lights 598 00:34:59,719 --> 00:35:02,200 Speaker 1: our way, you will always find a sister's love in 599 00:35:02,239 --> 00:35:05,440 Speaker 1: the heart of each tri K. I'm I got no, 600 00:35:05,640 --> 00:35:10,520 Speaker 1: this is this is good for? Yeah? Yeah, burning cross 601 00:35:10,600 --> 00:35:16,120 Speaker 1: is a little weird. Yeah it was. Yeah. You don't 602 00:35:16,120 --> 00:35:19,120 Speaker 1: know how why it's lit up. It's just illuminated in flame. Yeah, 603 00:35:19,440 --> 00:35:21,840 Speaker 1: it's weird. How prescient you're saying that is about to 604 00:35:21,880 --> 00:35:24,640 Speaker 1: be now. Hiram Evans, who ousted the pr People at 605 00:35:24,640 --> 00:35:26,359 Speaker 1: the end of nineteen twenty two, and became the next 606 00:35:26,440 --> 00:35:28,719 Speaker 1: Imperial Wizard. Still wanted to make money, but he was 607 00:35:28,760 --> 00:35:31,120 Speaker 1: also someone for whom straight up racism was a huge 608 00:35:31,160 --> 00:35:33,880 Speaker 1: part of the appeal. Here's the second coming of the KKK. 609 00:35:34,480 --> 00:35:37,120 Speaker 1: His first career as a dentist might seem modest. One 610 00:35:37,120 --> 00:35:39,280 Speaker 1: of his rivals liked to call him a tooth puller, 611 00:35:39,480 --> 00:35:41,840 Speaker 1: and he took advantage of the impression, calling himself the 612 00:35:41,880 --> 00:35:44,759 Speaker 1: most average man in America so as to normalize the clan. 613 00:35:45,120 --> 00:35:48,160 Speaker 1: His short, plump stature added to his everyman image. In fact, 614 00:35:48,280 --> 00:35:50,640 Speaker 1: he was capable of serious violence, and Dallas, where he 615 00:35:50,680 --> 00:35:53,319 Speaker 1: joined the clan in nineteen twenty, he had organized black 616 00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:57,480 Speaker 1: squads that kidnapped and tortured at least one black man. Dallas, 617 00:35:57,520 --> 00:35:59,120 Speaker 1: by the way, used to be known as the most 618 00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:02,240 Speaker 1: racist city in America around this time, the city of hate, 619 00:36:02,520 --> 00:36:04,320 Speaker 1: and it was actually a really cool story. The Dallas 620 00:36:04,360 --> 00:36:07,160 Speaker 1: Morning News crippled the clan in that city by like 621 00:36:07,200 --> 00:36:10,640 Speaker 1: having reporters find where their meetings were and takedown notes 622 00:36:10,680 --> 00:36:12,600 Speaker 1: of all of the license plates they saw to like 623 00:36:12,640 --> 00:36:15,240 Speaker 1: figure out which elected members and who was in the clan, 624 00:36:15,640 --> 00:36:19,160 Speaker 1: and like published that ship like morning News did a 625 00:36:19,239 --> 00:36:23,520 Speaker 1: lot of damage to the k docs, the docks, the 626 00:36:23,520 --> 00:36:27,400 Speaker 1: fucking fascists. Yeah, did a great job. So yeah, Dallas 627 00:36:27,400 --> 00:36:32,480 Speaker 1: Morning News is anti fall. I guess Evans decided that 628 00:36:32,520 --> 00:36:34,799 Speaker 1: the clan should be more than an MLM, It should 629 00:36:34,800 --> 00:36:37,520 Speaker 1: be a political party. He moved the KKKS headquarters to 630 00:36:37,640 --> 00:36:40,759 Speaker 1: d C and established a magazine, Fellowship Forum, that was 631 00:36:40,800 --> 00:36:43,560 Speaker 1: not explicitly tied to the KKK, but existed to further 632 00:36:43,600 --> 00:36:46,920 Speaker 1: its political aims. The Fellowship Forum build itself is standing 633 00:36:46,920 --> 00:36:51,400 Speaker 1: for pure Americanism. There were also in a number of 634 00:36:51,400 --> 00:36:54,480 Speaker 1: the documents I read the sentiment America First, which I 635 00:36:54,880 --> 00:36:57,680 Speaker 1: apparently came from the KKK before it became the center 636 00:36:57,680 --> 00:36:59,879 Speaker 1: of Charles Lindberg's organization. You found that on a lot 637 00:37:00,040 --> 00:37:02,880 Speaker 1: their documents. There was also just recently come out that 638 00:37:02,880 --> 00:37:04,440 Speaker 1: there was talk about a wall at one of the 639 00:37:04,440 --> 00:37:06,600 Speaker 1: big colon vacations they held like a guy talking about 640 00:37:06,600 --> 00:37:09,360 Speaker 1: we need a silver wall and keep out immigrants, but 641 00:37:09,480 --> 00:37:11,280 Speaker 1: he was not talking about one at the Mexican border. 642 00:37:11,320 --> 00:37:13,360 Speaker 1: He was talking about a wall of laws to stop 643 00:37:13,360 --> 00:37:19,960 Speaker 1: people from like Italy. They really hated Catholics, um so racist, 644 00:37:20,200 --> 00:37:27,680 Speaker 1: but different different fundamental concepts. Lifted dress it up a 645 00:37:27,680 --> 00:37:29,640 Speaker 1: little differently, put it over there, one of the Mexicans, 646 00:37:29,640 --> 00:37:35,360 Speaker 1: because they need stay in the shade when you go 647 00:37:35,440 --> 00:37:41,719 Speaker 1: to the cool coast. Scared. Oh good god. Soon after 648 00:37:41,800 --> 00:37:45,160 Speaker 1: chaking charge, Evans realized that the leader of the Indiana KKK, 649 00:37:45,600 --> 00:37:48,359 Speaker 1: David Stevenson, had some potential. He put him in charge 650 00:37:48,360 --> 00:37:52,120 Speaker 1: of recruitment for seven states. Here's that book again. I'm 651 00:37:52,239 --> 00:37:54,800 Speaker 1: nobody from nowhere, really, but I've got the biggest brains, 652 00:37:54,840 --> 00:37:57,239 Speaker 1: he boasted. I'm going to be the biggest man in 653 00:37:57,280 --> 00:38:00,400 Speaker 1: the United States. But Stevenson was a fraud several times over. 654 00:38:00,440 --> 00:38:02,040 Speaker 1: He claimed to be the millionaire son of a wealthy 655 00:38:02,040 --> 00:38:04,120 Speaker 1: businessman and who have earned a decoration for bravery in 656 00:38:04,160 --> 00:38:05,920 Speaker 1: World War One. In fact, he was the son of 657 00:38:05,920 --> 00:38:08,960 Speaker 1: a Texas sharecropper. His education at a parochial school ended 658 00:38:09,000 --> 00:38:10,839 Speaker 1: with the eighth grade, and his stint with the army 659 00:38:10,920 --> 00:38:13,240 Speaker 1: was as a recruiter in Iowa. He boasted of owning 660 00:38:13,280 --> 00:38:15,799 Speaker 1: a wholesale coal supply and auto accessory companies, but in 661 00:38:15,840 --> 00:38:18,400 Speaker 1: fact worked as a salesman for someone else's coal company. 662 00:38:18,600 --> 00:38:21,200 Speaker 1: He married at least three women, drank, heavily, got into fights, 663 00:38:21,239 --> 00:38:23,560 Speaker 1: beat his wives, and attempted to rape several other women, 664 00:38:24,320 --> 00:38:27,120 Speaker 1: but the motherfucker could talk and convince people to join 665 00:38:27,160 --> 00:38:30,480 Speaker 1: the KKK, so he stayed. Under his leadership. Twenty three 666 00:38:30,520 --> 00:38:32,920 Speaker 1: percent of the native born white men in southern Indiana 667 00:38:33,000 --> 00:38:36,040 Speaker 1: joined the KKK. He refused to be called by his name, 668 00:38:36,120 --> 00:38:39,279 Speaker 1: going by the Old Man. Stevenson made millions off of 669 00:38:39,320 --> 00:38:41,080 Speaker 1: his racist down line and was able to buy a 670 00:38:41,160 --> 00:38:43,360 Speaker 1: mansion and a yacht. We'll come back to him later. 671 00:38:43,480 --> 00:38:46,680 Speaker 1: He does get his just desserts. So he wasn't comfortable 672 00:38:46,719 --> 00:38:52,520 Speaker 1: with all the lofty titles. The old Man, the old Man, 673 00:38:53,520 --> 00:38:57,480 Speaker 1: I'm gonna be the biggest man in America. Yeah. For 674 00:38:57,520 --> 00:38:59,480 Speaker 1: a good long while in the early nineteen twenties, the 675 00:38:59,520 --> 00:39:02,399 Speaker 1: Ku Klux Clan was everywhere. At its height, as many 676 00:39:02,440 --> 00:39:05,880 Speaker 1: as four million Americans, roughly four percent of the country 677 00:39:05,960 --> 00:39:09,719 Speaker 1: were members. It is to this day the largest explicitly 678 00:39:09,800 --> 00:39:14,800 Speaker 1: racist organization in American history, if you don't count the Confederacy. Yeah, yeah, 679 00:39:14,840 --> 00:39:17,239 Speaker 1: four million. Now, the clan did not draw in that 680 00:39:17,320 --> 00:39:19,920 Speaker 1: many members by focusing on the racism up front. Was 681 00:39:19,960 --> 00:39:22,799 Speaker 1: always there a calm backdraft in their propaganda and at 682 00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:25,200 Speaker 1: every outing. But they knew you'd catch more flies with 683 00:39:25,239 --> 00:39:29,000 Speaker 1: honey than with water. Enter the clon vacations. These were 684 00:39:29,000 --> 00:39:32,719 Speaker 1: gigantic outdoor events, akin to massive state fairs or even carnivals, 685 00:39:32,719 --> 00:39:34,600 Speaker 1: which they held in order to draw in new members 686 00:39:34,640 --> 00:39:37,600 Speaker 1: and foster solidarity with clans members. Here's how the Nation 687 00:39:37,680 --> 00:39:41,640 Speaker 1: described one such gathering. On July four nine, for instance, 688 00:39:41,640 --> 00:39:44,240 Speaker 1: a crowd estimated it between fifty thousand and two hundred 689 00:39:44,280 --> 00:39:47,399 Speaker 1: thousand attended a clan picnic in Cocomo, Indiana. The clon 690 00:39:47,480 --> 00:39:50,640 Speaker 1: vocation boasted six tons of beef, fifty five thousand buns, 691 00:39:50,680 --> 00:39:53,440 Speaker 1: twenty five hundred pies, and five thousand cases of soda. 692 00:39:53,719 --> 00:39:55,799 Speaker 1: Children had their own play center, while adults could take 693 00:39:55,840 --> 00:39:58,759 Speaker 1: their pick of entertainments, including a boys singing quartet, a 694 00:39:58,840 --> 00:40:02,200 Speaker 1: talkie film so his performers, a six round boxing match, 695 00:40:02,239 --> 00:40:04,680 Speaker 1: and a daredevil who performed aerial acrobatics on the wing 696 00:40:04,719 --> 00:40:09,080 Speaker 1: of a circling plane. Yeah, all right, it sounds like, 697 00:40:09,480 --> 00:40:12,360 Speaker 1: sounds like and that was the idea we hold this, 698 00:40:12,480 --> 00:40:14,000 Speaker 1: not like we're going to try to get all the races, 699 00:40:14,080 --> 00:40:15,799 Speaker 1: but like we're just holding throw a big party for 700 00:40:15,880 --> 00:40:17,840 Speaker 1: white people and then maybe they want to join the 701 00:40:17,920 --> 00:40:21,560 Speaker 1: clan and then we'll get more money. Yeah, thousand burgers. 702 00:40:21,640 --> 00:40:23,760 Speaker 1: They also charged admission and stuff. They made a profit 703 00:40:24,360 --> 00:40:28,239 Speaker 1: like fifteen twenty grand, which three dollars as a shipload. Yeah, 704 00:40:28,239 --> 00:40:30,000 Speaker 1: they cleaned up. And the biggest of these was in 705 00:40:30,200 --> 00:40:32,640 Speaker 1: twenty four had like two thousand people show up, the 706 00:40:32,719 --> 00:40:35,680 Speaker 1: largest clan gathering ever and like a lot of people 707 00:40:35,719 --> 00:40:37,560 Speaker 1: didn't know it was necessarily like, oh, this is like 708 00:40:37,600 --> 00:40:39,080 Speaker 1: for the clan stuff. It's like no, I'm going to 709 00:40:39,120 --> 00:40:41,640 Speaker 1: go to a fund. But it was like it was 710 00:40:41,719 --> 00:40:44,799 Speaker 1: like it's the clan. It's yeah. It wasn't weird then, 711 00:40:44,960 --> 00:40:47,400 Speaker 1: like that people met and fell in love there. I 712 00:40:47,440 --> 00:40:49,160 Speaker 1: bet they did that. A lot of a lot of 713 00:40:49,200 --> 00:40:51,719 Speaker 1: clan babies, a lot of clon vocation kiddies. Wasn't the 714 00:40:51,760 --> 00:40:54,560 Speaker 1: reason pull like about like the number of people in 715 00:40:54,600 --> 00:40:57,839 Speaker 1: America who like are okay with white supremacy and neo 716 00:40:57,920 --> 00:41:00,080 Speaker 1: Nazis and stuff, And it was about four p s 717 00:41:00,719 --> 00:41:03,319 Speaker 1: something like that, thank you. It's about i'd really like 718 00:41:03,360 --> 00:41:06,640 Speaker 1: recently like last year, yeah, which is a lot of 719 00:41:06,719 --> 00:41:11,640 Speaker 1: racists In fucking Toronto, twenty three thousand people voted for 720 00:41:11,719 --> 00:41:17,840 Speaker 1: Faith Goldie and explicitly neo Nazi candidate Canadians, So and 721 00:41:17,840 --> 00:41:21,120 Speaker 1: they're Canadians. Things are going well, things are going great. 722 00:41:21,239 --> 00:41:24,520 Speaker 1: Wasn't like a fun barbecue to go to. So it's 723 00:41:24,680 --> 00:41:29,920 Speaker 1: with thousands of buns, thousands of speaking of thousands of buns. Ads, 724 00:41:36,080 --> 00:41:40,960 Speaker 1: we're back. We're talking about Clon Vocations, the KKKS primary 725 00:41:41,080 --> 00:41:46,000 Speaker 1: method of recruiting new klansmen. I hate these words. Way 726 00:41:46,000 --> 00:41:48,280 Speaker 1: too many ks being set up in here. I slightly 727 00:41:48,280 --> 00:41:57,040 Speaker 1: cringe every time cringe with the k Yeah, clingel. Large 728 00:41:57,040 --> 00:41:59,720 Speaker 1: cross burnings were also held at Clon vocations, but unlike 729 00:41:59,719 --> 00:42:03,080 Speaker 1: the first and ladder types of cross burnings that were 730 00:42:03,080 --> 00:42:05,640 Speaker 1: familiar with to day, these were not primarily hateful spectacles. 731 00:42:05,640 --> 00:42:07,520 Speaker 1: So like a cross burning is like the most racist 732 00:42:07,560 --> 00:42:11,000 Speaker 1: thing you can do. These were not like they were 733 00:42:11,040 --> 00:42:14,320 Speaker 1: pro Protestant and everyone knew the clan was anti Catholic. 734 00:42:15,200 --> 00:42:17,520 Speaker 1: But the cross burnings were more like a fireworks show, 735 00:42:17,600 --> 00:42:19,399 Speaker 1: like they would they would compete to see who could 736 00:42:19,400 --> 00:42:23,200 Speaker 1: build the biggest like crossing which were like fifty ft tasson, 737 00:42:23,239 --> 00:42:25,000 Speaker 1: which were too big to even burn. They would like 738 00:42:25,000 --> 00:42:27,839 Speaker 1: funk up. Sometimes they would make gigantic crosses and covering 739 00:42:27,880 --> 00:42:29,799 Speaker 1: with light bulbs, like it was like a look at 740 00:42:29,840 --> 00:42:34,160 Speaker 1: this cool thing that we're doing a little bit of 741 00:42:34,200 --> 00:42:36,320 Speaker 1: that because they weren't like going to like black people's 742 00:42:36,320 --> 00:42:38,600 Speaker 1: houses and putting them on their lawns. Like that may 743 00:42:38,640 --> 00:42:40,400 Speaker 1: have happened out in the Sticks sometimes, but like the 744 00:42:40,440 --> 00:42:43,360 Speaker 1: main purpose was to like entertain people. That was the 745 00:42:43,400 --> 00:42:50,919 Speaker 1: goal of the Cross things. Um, so this context, but 746 00:42:51,160 --> 00:42:55,680 Speaker 1: when you're out in the wild much more usually we 747 00:42:55,719 --> 00:42:57,239 Speaker 1: will be getting to that. I will be talking about 748 00:42:57,239 --> 00:42:59,560 Speaker 1: the violence and stuff. But from what I read, cross 749 00:42:59,560 --> 00:43:01,920 Speaker 1: burnings not a huge part of the violence at that point. 750 00:43:02,040 --> 00:43:03,719 Speaker 1: Like that was more of like a show anything that 751 00:43:03,760 --> 00:43:05,520 Speaker 1: you did at the big events, and the violence was 752 00:43:05,560 --> 00:43:08,560 Speaker 1: the violence. The clan did describe themselves as the Army 753 00:43:08,560 --> 00:43:10,359 Speaker 1: of the Cross. And I do want to really point 754 00:43:10,400 --> 00:43:13,960 Speaker 1: out how much anti Catholic bias was critical to this too, 755 00:43:13,960 --> 00:43:17,120 Speaker 1: because they were super racist against Catholics as well as 756 00:43:17,160 --> 00:43:19,920 Speaker 1: black people in Jews. And I guess you're not racist 757 00:43:19,960 --> 00:43:23,520 Speaker 1: against socialist, but they didn't like socialist anybody that wasn't like, Yeah, 758 00:43:23,680 --> 00:43:26,920 Speaker 1: that wasn't a very specific kind of hardcaring member of 759 00:43:27,000 --> 00:43:32,200 Speaker 1: the very legitimate organization. Yeah. The Klansmen also played highly 760 00:43:32,239 --> 00:43:35,480 Speaker 1: publicized baseball games, often against teams of people that they 761 00:43:35,480 --> 00:43:38,759 Speaker 1: defined in their propaganda as aliens. The second coming of 762 00:43:38,760 --> 00:43:42,759 Speaker 1: the KKK notes quote the Youngstown clan team challenged the 763 00:43:42,840 --> 00:43:46,560 Speaker 1: Knights of Columbus, and the clan played Wichita's crack colored team, 764 00:43:46,800 --> 00:43:50,560 Speaker 1: the Monrovians. The clan lost. Finally, in areas of clan strength, 765 00:43:50,800 --> 00:43:54,360 Speaker 1: it operated sandlot teams that played in recognized leagues, sometimes 766 00:43:54,400 --> 00:43:57,960 Speaker 1: semi pro teams. Indiana, a clan stronghold, fielded a dozen 767 00:43:58,000 --> 00:44:00,960 Speaker 1: such teams. These leagues might plan adiums, in the newspaper 768 00:44:01,000 --> 00:44:03,920 Speaker 1: coverage might list all team members, no secrecy here. In 769 00:44:04,000 --> 00:44:06,920 Speaker 1: Los Angeles the clan team played a three game charity 770 00:44:06,960 --> 00:44:11,920 Speaker 1: series against the Benigh Breath team, and in nine in Washington, 771 00:44:12,000 --> 00:44:14,720 Speaker 1: d C. The clan played against the Hebrew All Stars. 772 00:44:15,040 --> 00:44:17,960 Speaker 1: Newspaper coverage typically treated the clan team like all others, 773 00:44:17,960 --> 00:44:21,320 Speaker 1: with no particular attention to clan politics. Thus, baseball function 774 00:44:21,360 --> 00:44:23,360 Speaker 1: to normalize the clans that it could appear as a 775 00:44:23,360 --> 00:44:25,800 Speaker 1: be nine club akin to the Elks, or again a 776 00:44:25,880 --> 00:44:34,000 Speaker 1: labor union KKK playing the Benigh Breath ball. That was 777 00:44:34,040 --> 00:44:40,520 Speaker 1: the thing that happened in history. Yeah. Now, while all 778 00:44:40,560 --> 00:44:42,960 Speaker 1: this was going on, there were clavern's who took to 779 00:44:43,000 --> 00:44:47,520 Speaker 1: the KKKS more traditional activities, violently oppressing minorities. A number 780 00:44:47,520 --> 00:44:50,959 Speaker 1: of clavern's exercised vigilante justice. That is an important story 781 00:44:51,000 --> 00:44:53,120 Speaker 1: which I've waited until the end to cover. That's because 782 00:44:53,120 --> 00:44:55,080 Speaker 1: I think it's important to understand what the Second Clan 783 00:44:55,239 --> 00:44:58,160 Speaker 1: was in context. The first Clan was awful and a 784 00:44:58,200 --> 00:45:01,560 Speaker 1: clear terrorist organization, was viewed by most Americans as a 785 00:45:01,640 --> 00:45:04,440 Speaker 1: terrorist organization, at least outside of the South. But the 786 00:45:04,480 --> 00:45:07,200 Speaker 1: only real ethos of the Second Clan was making money. 787 00:45:07,520 --> 00:45:10,000 Speaker 1: The racism and bigotry was just there because in nineteen 788 00:45:10,600 --> 00:45:13,160 Speaker 1: it's sold. If the same pr people that had hatched 789 00:45:13,200 --> 00:45:16,080 Speaker 1: this scheme were around today, they may would have made 790 00:45:16,080 --> 00:45:18,560 Speaker 1: a fraternal order that was super woken PC because there's 791 00:45:18,560 --> 00:45:20,480 Speaker 1: more money there now. Like they were. I'm sure they 792 00:45:20,480 --> 00:45:22,239 Speaker 1: were racist too, but that it wasn't about that. It 793 00:45:22,280 --> 00:45:25,080 Speaker 1: was about making the money and the clan. Again it 794 00:45:25,160 --> 00:45:27,320 Speaker 1: is it's important to understand if you're gonna understand the 795 00:45:27,360 --> 00:45:30,360 Speaker 1: twenties that everyone knew the clan was racist, but everyone 796 00:45:30,440 --> 00:45:35,560 Speaker 1: was racist, like the woke people were racist, like our 797 00:45:35,600 --> 00:45:40,239 Speaker 1: grandparents were racist. Every everybody was. It was yeah, it's 798 00:45:40,280 --> 00:45:44,120 Speaker 1: only a griff because of the money making structure, wasn't Yeah, Yeah, 799 00:45:44,360 --> 00:45:48,439 Speaker 1: it was not considered extreme ye, not radicalizing anybody or anything. Like, yeah, 800 00:45:48,440 --> 00:45:50,640 Speaker 1: now what we're going to talk about. The violent part 801 00:45:50,840 --> 00:45:52,960 Speaker 1: was extreme, and that is an important factor, but that 802 00:45:53,040 --> 00:45:56,760 Speaker 1: was an ancillary thing that happened because of the original 803 00:45:56,800 --> 00:45:59,600 Speaker 1: KKKS history and because a lot of racists are violent. 804 00:46:00,080 --> 00:46:03,200 Speaker 1: The violence was not primarily the goal of the organization. 805 00:46:03,520 --> 00:46:07,279 Speaker 1: It was the Pyramids game. Yeah. So in the early nineties, 806 00:46:07,400 --> 00:46:11,279 Speaker 1: urban crime rose by in the United States. Clan propaganda 807 00:46:11,320 --> 00:46:14,000 Speaker 1: heavily emphasize these rising crime rates and build the clan 808 00:46:14,360 --> 00:46:17,960 Speaker 1: as like their predecessors regulators. Much of this crime was 809 00:46:18,000 --> 00:46:20,800 Speaker 1: driven by prohibition, and prohibition was a cause that KKK 810 00:46:20,960 --> 00:46:24,279 Speaker 1: firmly supported. Also, women's voting rights. There's a feminist angle 811 00:46:24,320 --> 00:46:26,640 Speaker 1: to the clan too. We're not gonna get into enough 812 00:46:26,680 --> 00:46:28,880 Speaker 1: of it here, but there was a women's auxiliary KKK 813 00:46:29,480 --> 00:46:32,360 Speaker 1: very popular, like the clan was because one of the 814 00:46:32,400 --> 00:46:34,400 Speaker 1: two pr people who found this was a woman. Was 815 00:46:34,440 --> 00:46:36,799 Speaker 1: one of the first organizations in American realized like, well, 816 00:46:36,920 --> 00:46:39,080 Speaker 1: women are voting now, so they have political power. They 817 00:46:39,120 --> 00:46:41,879 Speaker 1: also have more money now, so we should go after them. 818 00:46:41,960 --> 00:46:43,800 Speaker 1: We should get that, we should get that fucking money. 819 00:46:44,000 --> 00:46:49,279 Speaker 1: Well that did. Yeah. In the kkk K feminist icon, 820 00:46:49,520 --> 00:46:56,200 Speaker 1: the KKKA is important, super important, not just men in 821 00:46:56,239 --> 00:46:59,120 Speaker 1: the clan these days. Yeah uh. Some people even called 822 00:46:59,120 --> 00:47:02,280 Speaker 1: the clan the mill wing of the Temperance movement. Generally, 823 00:47:02,320 --> 00:47:05,120 Speaker 1: klansmen and individual Claverance were willing to use violence against 824 00:47:05,160 --> 00:47:07,840 Speaker 1: black people, of course, but also any other bugbear of 825 00:47:07,840 --> 00:47:10,000 Speaker 1: that era's right wing. They carried out a raid that 826 00:47:10,120 --> 00:47:12,880 Speaker 1: arrested fifty two bootleggers in Anaheim, got a hundred and 827 00:47:12,880 --> 00:47:16,759 Speaker 1: twenty five people arrested in Indianapolis, again bootleggers in the Northwest. 828 00:47:16,800 --> 00:47:19,520 Speaker 1: They spent a lot of time threatening labor organizers. One 829 00:47:19,600 --> 00:47:22,319 Speaker 1: Oregon Kleigel sent out this morning, if you are the 830 00:47:22,320 --> 00:47:25,000 Speaker 1: mouthpiece of American labor in this locality, warn and do 831 00:47:25,080 --> 00:47:26,920 Speaker 1: not endorse the above principles, then you should be a 832 00:47:27,000 --> 00:47:30,719 Speaker 1: fit subject for a vigilance committee. I found another piece 833 00:47:30,719 --> 00:47:34,319 Speaker 1: of sheet music in the KKK that looks forward, this 834 00:47:34,400 --> 00:47:38,000 Speaker 1: regulator depiction of the KKK. It's titled there's a Klansman 835 00:47:38,080 --> 00:47:41,760 Speaker 1: watching you. O. You guys want to sing this for me? Cody, 836 00:47:41,840 --> 00:47:44,600 Speaker 1: that's all you get. Yeah, you're right, you did the 837 00:47:44,600 --> 00:47:50,800 Speaker 1: other thing. And also you're the musician. There's a class 838 00:47:50,960 --> 00:47:55,960 Speaker 1: of people patriotic in their work, always on their guard, 839 00:47:56,160 --> 00:48:03,040 Speaker 1: always watchful, misspelled, and alert. They all make good citizens. 840 00:48:03,280 --> 00:48:06,600 Speaker 1: They're friends of Uncle Sam. They fight for right with 841 00:48:06,680 --> 00:48:11,560 Speaker 1: all their might. They're called the ku Klux clan. Um 842 00:48:11,640 --> 00:48:15,000 Speaker 1: that the verse keep going, man, you will find them 843 00:48:15,280 --> 00:48:20,240 Speaker 1: about in the country. You will find them in town. 844 00:48:21,280 --> 00:48:27,480 Speaker 1: There as thick as bees in clover. You can't tell him. 845 00:48:28,000 --> 00:48:36,160 Speaker 1: They're Oh, you may think that you're gone to fool them. 846 00:48:36,920 --> 00:48:42,240 Speaker 1: Have a cow? What you do? The ku Klux clan 847 00:48:42,800 --> 00:48:52,359 Speaker 1: or always watching, sure, watching you. There's a second verse 848 00:48:52,440 --> 00:48:56,960 Speaker 1: that I will not do Wow. Wow, that was a virtue. 849 00:48:57,000 --> 00:49:05,000 Speaker 1: Also performance. Let's that's how it goes. So where did 850 00:49:05,080 --> 00:49:11,120 Speaker 1: they sing this again? What was records? They had records. 851 00:49:13,760 --> 00:49:16,320 Speaker 1: They had a publishing press and a record press. Like 852 00:49:19,040 --> 00:49:21,840 Speaker 1: you're having a dinner party, like, let's put on the 853 00:49:21,880 --> 00:49:25,160 Speaker 1: new clan record. You guys heard there's a clan has 854 00:49:25,160 --> 00:49:32,320 Speaker 1: been watching you fire. Yeah. Oregon and Oklahoma were particular 855 00:49:32,320 --> 00:49:35,520 Speaker 1: centers of clan vigilance committee violence. The Second Coming of 856 00:49:35,560 --> 00:49:39,239 Speaker 1: the KKK summarizes quote three Oregon cases known as the 857 00:49:39,280 --> 00:49:42,880 Speaker 1: Oregon Outrages, captured widespread press attention when night writers terrified 858 00:49:42,880 --> 00:49:46,200 Speaker 1: their victims with such lynching threats. JF. Hale A piano salesman. 859 00:49:46,280 --> 00:49:48,919 Speaker 1: White was accused of illicit sexual affairs, and the would 860 00:49:48,920 --> 00:49:51,680 Speaker 1: be Lyncher's demanded that he break off the improper relationships, 861 00:49:51,880 --> 00:49:53,799 Speaker 1: and may have also been targeted because he owed money 862 00:49:53,840 --> 00:49:56,840 Speaker 1: that a klansman was having trouble collecting. Sam Johnson, described 863 00:49:56,880 --> 00:49:59,399 Speaker 1: as part Mexican, was accused of stealing chickens and being 864 00:49:59,400 --> 00:50:03,080 Speaker 1: an idler. Arthur Burr, an African American bootblack, accused of bootlegging, 865 00:50:03,120 --> 00:50:06,239 Speaker 1: received the worst treatment. Vigilantes abducted him and took him 866 00:50:06,239 --> 00:50:08,400 Speaker 1: to the very crest of the Siskiyou Mountains, where they 867 00:50:08,400 --> 00:50:11,080 Speaker 1: strung him up and let him down three times. Releasing him, 868 00:50:11,120 --> 00:50:13,640 Speaker 1: they fired revolvers near his feet, demanding that he leave 869 00:50:13,680 --> 00:50:17,960 Speaker 1: the era permanently, yelling can you run inward. Though charges 870 00:50:18,000 --> 00:50:20,080 Speaker 1: were brought against three groups of clansmen, in each case, 871 00:50:20,160 --> 00:50:22,239 Speaker 1: juries acquitted the culprits on the grounds that because the 872 00:50:22,320 --> 00:50:25,640 Speaker 1: victims were morally bad, their vigilante punishment benefit of the community. 873 00:50:25,800 --> 00:50:29,400 Speaker 1: By contrast, Oklahoma, Indiana, Kansas, and southern Illinois locations that 874 00:50:29,440 --> 00:50:31,919 Speaker 1: were as much southern as northern experienced a great deal 875 00:50:31,960 --> 00:50:35,440 Speaker 1: of actual clan of violence, whippings, tar and featherings, and lynchings, 876 00:50:35,560 --> 00:50:37,960 Speaker 1: and all four places, some degree of racial segregation was 877 00:50:38,000 --> 00:50:40,240 Speaker 1: in place, and clan violence helped to keep it in place. 878 00:50:40,760 --> 00:50:43,719 Speaker 1: And Oklahoma, clan provoked violence became so widespread, with a 879 00:50:43,760 --> 00:50:46,200 Speaker 1: reported one flogging for every night of the year, that 880 00:50:46,280 --> 00:50:48,719 Speaker 1: the governor placed parts of the state under martial law. 881 00:50:48,960 --> 00:50:52,560 Speaker 1: Clan efforts got him impeached in nineteen three. Oklahoma law 882 00:50:52,600 --> 00:50:55,440 Speaker 1: officers sometimes handed suspects over to clan whipping parties or 883 00:50:55,440 --> 00:50:58,480 Speaker 1: even participated in the beatings, and Kansas clansmen abducted an 884 00:50:58,520 --> 00:51:01,200 Speaker 1: anti clan mayor, tied him to a and laid thirty 885 00:51:01,239 --> 00:51:04,200 Speaker 1: stripes on his bare back, and bloody Williamson as one 886 00:51:04,239 --> 00:51:06,800 Speaker 1: southern Illinois county became known the local clan and the 887 00:51:06,840 --> 00:51:10,439 Speaker 1: Anti Saloon League merged into the Williamson County Law Enforcement League, 888 00:51:10,520 --> 00:51:12,920 Speaker 1: which soon became run by the clan. Attacks on the 889 00:51:12,920 --> 00:51:15,520 Speaker 1: operators of the wide open bars produced lethal battles in 890 00:51:15,600 --> 00:51:18,799 Speaker 1: nine twenty five, involved a gunman and the deployment of 891 00:51:18,800 --> 00:51:21,920 Speaker 1: military forces, and ended by forcing the anti clan sheriff 892 00:51:21,960 --> 00:51:25,799 Speaker 1: out of office. These armed skirmishes killed twenty people. So 893 00:51:26,360 --> 00:51:29,400 Speaker 1: do not want to be ignoring the violence is still happening, 894 00:51:29,680 --> 00:51:33,000 Speaker 1: but it wasn't the overarching like, it wasn't the purpose. 895 00:51:33,239 --> 00:51:35,440 Speaker 1: The clan was more about money. But also the violence 896 00:51:35,520 --> 00:51:38,239 Speaker 1: was occurring within the society was fine with us. This 897 00:51:38,280 --> 00:51:40,960 Speaker 1: is not a counter cultural act. Again, they were acquitted 898 00:51:41,000 --> 00:51:43,320 Speaker 1: generally when they were brought to trial because most people 899 00:51:43,320 --> 00:51:44,960 Speaker 1: were fine with what Most white people were fine with 900 00:51:44,960 --> 00:51:48,719 Speaker 1: what they were doing taking care of business because the 901 00:51:48,719 --> 00:51:51,840 Speaker 1: government's not gonna do it. So horribly violent, but not 902 00:51:52,000 --> 00:51:54,799 Speaker 1: horribly violent against the wishes of the majority of their 903 00:51:54,840 --> 00:51:57,719 Speaker 1: white Protestant country. And in fact, we're kind of saying 904 00:51:57,719 --> 00:51:59,960 Speaker 1: as heroes by a lot of people, which was true 905 00:52:00,239 --> 00:52:03,640 Speaker 1: only in the South. For the original KKK North was not. 906 00:52:05,760 --> 00:52:08,360 Speaker 1: It's a gaming of racist Batman exactly. And America has 907 00:52:08,360 --> 00:52:12,960 Speaker 1: always loved the vigilante badass that's the punisher. But racist. Yeah. 908 00:52:13,239 --> 00:52:16,480 Speaker 1: In nine the KKK even carried out an attack on 909 00:52:16,520 --> 00:52:18,440 Speaker 1: the home of the young Malcolm X when he and 910 00:52:18,480 --> 00:52:21,120 Speaker 1: his parents lived in North Omaha. Here's a quote from 911 00:52:21,120 --> 00:52:25,200 Speaker 1: Malcolm's autobiography. It actually is how his autobiography starts. When 912 00:52:25,200 --> 00:52:27,160 Speaker 1: my mother was pregnant with me, she told me later, 913 00:52:27,200 --> 00:52:29,680 Speaker 1: a party of hooded Ku Klux Klan writers galloped up 914 00:52:29,680 --> 00:52:32,160 Speaker 1: to our home in Omaha, Nebraska, one night, surrounding the 915 00:52:32,160 --> 00:52:34,680 Speaker 1: house brandishing their shotguns and rifles, they shouted for my 916 00:52:34,719 --> 00:52:36,759 Speaker 1: father to come out. My mother went to the front 917 00:52:36,760 --> 00:52:38,680 Speaker 1: door and opened it, standing where they could see her 918 00:52:38,680 --> 00:52:40,719 Speaker 1: pregnant condition. She told them that she was alone with 919 00:52:40,760 --> 00:52:43,120 Speaker 1: her three small children, and that my father was away 920 00:52:43,200 --> 00:52:46,319 Speaker 1: preaching in Milwaukee. The klansmen shouted threats and warnings at 921 00:52:46,320 --> 00:52:48,120 Speaker 1: herd that we had better get out of town because 922 00:52:48,280 --> 00:52:50,880 Speaker 1: the good Christian white people were not going to stand 923 00:52:50,880 --> 00:52:54,000 Speaker 1: for my father's spread in trouble among the good Negroes 924 00:52:54,040 --> 00:52:57,560 Speaker 1: of Omaha. With the Back to Africa preachings of Marcus Garvey, 925 00:52:57,760 --> 00:53:00,560 Speaker 1: my father, the Reverend Earl Little, was a Batist minister, 926 00:53:00,600 --> 00:53:03,680 Speaker 1: a dedicated organizer from Marcus Aurelius Garvey's u n I, 927 00:53:03,840 --> 00:53:07,000 Speaker 1: a United Negro Improvement Association. With the help of such 928 00:53:07,000 --> 00:53:09,440 Speaker 1: disciples as my father, Garvey, from his headquarters in New 929 00:53:09,520 --> 00:53:12,080 Speaker 1: York City's Harlem, was raising the banner of black race 930 00:53:12,160 --> 00:53:14,480 Speaker 1: purity and exhorting the Negro masses to return to their 931 00:53:14,520 --> 00:53:17,440 Speaker 1: ancestral African homeland, a cause which had made Garvey the 932 00:53:17,480 --> 00:53:20,480 Speaker 1: most controversial black man on earth. Still shouting threats, the 933 00:53:20,520 --> 00:53:23,200 Speaker 1: klansmen finally spurred their horses and galloped around the house, 934 00:53:23,440 --> 00:53:26,600 Speaker 1: shattering every window with their gun butts. Then they rode 935 00:53:26,600 --> 00:53:28,839 Speaker 1: off into the night, their torches flaring as suddenly as 936 00:53:28,840 --> 00:53:33,719 Speaker 1: they had come. It was terrifying. Yeah, it's horrifying now. 937 00:53:33,880 --> 00:53:36,600 Speaker 1: Like all good and bad Pyramids games, the clan had 938 00:53:36,640 --> 00:53:38,600 Speaker 1: to come to an end. It was finally brought down, 939 00:53:38,680 --> 00:53:41,160 Speaker 1: not by the US government, because probably most of THEIS 940 00:53:41,200 --> 00:53:43,839 Speaker 1: government's fine with it, but by the incompetence, greed, and 941 00:53:43,880 --> 00:53:47,840 Speaker 1: corruption of its leaders. It's always, it's always that with 942 00:53:47,880 --> 00:53:51,200 Speaker 1: these kinds of far right gangs. Philip Fox, editor of 943 00:53:51,239 --> 00:53:54,280 Speaker 1: the Imperial night Hawk, a major clan newspaper, was sentenced 944 00:53:54,320 --> 00:53:57,399 Speaker 1: to life imprisonment for murdering another clansman he considered a rival. 945 00:53:57,640 --> 00:54:01,240 Speaker 1: Hiram Evans called it a personal affair. Governor Ed Jackson 946 00:54:01,239 --> 00:54:04,480 Speaker 1: of Indiana, a klansman, was indicted for bribery. Officers of 947 00:54:04,520 --> 00:54:07,839 Speaker 1: the Klan Bank were also indicted for embezzlement and grand larceny. 948 00:54:07,880 --> 00:54:10,000 Speaker 1: There were countless scandals and arrests, a fight with the 949 00:54:10,040 --> 00:54:13,000 Speaker 1: FBI that led to nineteen people being charged. Members caught 950 00:54:13,080 --> 00:54:15,719 Speaker 1: drinking and bootlegging and paying for back out the abortions. 951 00:54:15,960 --> 00:54:17,840 Speaker 1: They picked a fight with jed Gar Hoover. Not a 952 00:54:17,840 --> 00:54:20,759 Speaker 1: smart guy to pick a fight with, really bad guy 953 00:54:20,800 --> 00:54:22,799 Speaker 1: to pick a fighter in that period of time. They 954 00:54:22,800 --> 00:54:25,000 Speaker 1: did not win that fight. The final nail in the 955 00:54:25,080 --> 00:54:28,759 Speaker 1: KKK's coffin was the conviction of Indiana Grand Dragon Stevenson, 956 00:54:28,800 --> 00:54:32,880 Speaker 1: who talked about earlier for kidnapping, raping, and murdering his secretary. 957 00:54:33,960 --> 00:54:37,440 Speaker 1: Now only the classiest, high class. I mean, I was 958 00:54:37,440 --> 00:54:42,640 Speaker 1: waiting to be like white collar, like a tax thing, saying, 959 00:54:42,880 --> 00:54:45,759 Speaker 1: like a terrible thing. He did well. And here's here's what. 960 00:54:45,920 --> 00:54:49,799 Speaker 1: It's actually even worse than it sounds because he did 961 00:54:49,840 --> 00:54:53,520 Speaker 1: not technically murdered her. He raped her and assaulted her, 962 00:54:53,560 --> 00:54:56,000 Speaker 1: and then she killed herself. But the jury convicted him 963 00:54:56,000 --> 00:54:58,880 Speaker 1: of murder because they believed he'd ruined her, which is 964 00:54:58,920 --> 00:55:01,400 Speaker 1: also why she killed her. Else, it's like even worse 965 00:55:01,440 --> 00:55:04,000 Speaker 1: than just because it's the twenties and it was a 966 00:55:04,040 --> 00:55:07,040 Speaker 1: garbage time to exist. Yeah, it's it's messed up. But 967 00:55:07,160 --> 00:55:11,600 Speaker 1: Stevenson went to fucking prison. Uh I think so? Yeah, 968 00:55:11,600 --> 00:55:14,759 Speaker 1: he was convicted a second degree murder. Um. Yeah, my 969 00:55:14,880 --> 00:55:17,600 Speaker 1: ninety seven, the KKK had gone from its high of 970 00:55:17,640 --> 00:55:19,640 Speaker 1: like four million members to less than three d and 971 00:55:19,640 --> 00:55:23,480 Speaker 1: fifty tho active members nationwide. It never quite went extinct entirely. 972 00:55:23,719 --> 00:55:26,359 Speaker 1: Men continue wearing clan robes and being racist up until 973 00:55:26,360 --> 00:55:29,080 Speaker 1: the modern day, but the giant money making and political 974 00:55:29,160 --> 00:55:32,000 Speaker 1: enterprise that it once was fell apart. Are there still dues? 975 00:55:33,239 --> 00:55:36,480 Speaker 1: I mean maybe an individual chapters, but there's no you know, 976 00:55:37,239 --> 00:55:39,759 Speaker 1: not the structure of saying it was. Yeah, there's some 977 00:55:39,800 --> 00:55:42,280 Speaker 1: people that try to be that, but like it's pretty 978 00:55:42,320 --> 00:55:45,880 Speaker 1: shadows of themselves. The legacy of the KKK outside of 979 00:55:45,880 --> 00:55:48,960 Speaker 1: its existence as an MLM and the vigilante violence had inspired, 980 00:55:49,120 --> 00:55:53,120 Speaker 1: is unclear. During its height, the KKK was extremely politically active, 981 00:55:53,320 --> 00:55:55,360 Speaker 1: but there is substantial debate as to whether or not 982 00:55:55,400 --> 00:55:58,359 Speaker 1: it actually influenced politics on a mass scale. A number 983 00:55:58,360 --> 00:56:00,440 Speaker 1: of clan backed candidates were a less did and the 984 00:56:00,520 --> 00:56:04,000 Speaker 1: clan was a massive fundraiser, but that Harvard Studies analysis 985 00:56:04,000 --> 00:56:06,120 Speaker 1: claimed that the actual political achievements of the group were 986 00:56:06,120 --> 00:56:09,239 Speaker 1: fairly minimal just because those people were already gonna get elected. 987 00:56:09,239 --> 00:56:11,880 Speaker 1: They weren't elected because there are clansmen. Everybody was fucking racist. 988 00:56:12,760 --> 00:56:15,279 Speaker 1: They're just happy to be in the clan. However, in 989 00:56:15,320 --> 00:56:17,560 Speaker 1: the conclusion of the second coming to of the KKK. 990 00:56:17,800 --> 00:56:21,680 Speaker 1: Linda Gordon makes this note. Some scholars and contemporary observers 991 00:56:21,719 --> 00:56:23,960 Speaker 1: have seen the nineteen twenties Northern Clan as a failure 992 00:56:24,000 --> 00:56:26,120 Speaker 1: because it was short lived and because its campaigns against 993 00:56:26,160 --> 00:56:28,279 Speaker 1: Catholics and Jews did not manage to confine them to 994 00:56:28,320 --> 00:56:32,640 Speaker 1: second class citizenship, but transience is common to most social movements. Moreover, 995 00:56:32,680 --> 00:56:35,000 Speaker 1: at the Clan Declient in part because it had triumphed 996 00:56:35,040 --> 00:56:39,080 Speaker 1: in several respects. State eugenics laws providing for forcible sterilization 997 00:56:39,080 --> 00:56:41,799 Speaker 1: of those of defective stock spread the thirty States, and 998 00:56:41,840 --> 00:56:44,520 Speaker 1: those labeled defective were typically the poor and people of color. 999 00:56:44,760 --> 00:56:47,880 Speaker 1: The biggest clan victory was immigration restriction, and Imperial Wizard 1000 00:56:47,880 --> 00:56:52,279 Speaker 1: events repeatedly claimed credit for its passage. I mean, it 1001 00:56:52,360 --> 00:56:56,799 Speaker 1: is pretty disappointing that their eventual like downfall er decline 1002 00:56:57,000 --> 00:57:02,160 Speaker 1: was not because people started to know better or like 1003 00:57:02,360 --> 00:57:04,560 Speaker 1: people stood up like this whole story. I'm sitting here 1004 00:57:04,600 --> 00:57:06,719 Speaker 1: thinking like, yeah, but when is it like oh this 1005 00:57:06,760 --> 00:57:09,520 Speaker 1: person like there's this big altercation and people started just 1006 00:57:09,640 --> 00:57:12,000 Speaker 1: public opinion started to change. Nope, it was they were 1007 00:57:12,040 --> 00:57:14,560 Speaker 1: fine with the racism and the vigilante murder. It was 1008 00:57:14,600 --> 00:57:18,920 Speaker 1: the abortion thing that really back Alley abortions really turned 1009 00:57:18,920 --> 00:57:25,880 Speaker 1: America against him through it. I know, the wall stuff, 1010 00:57:25,880 --> 00:57:30,520 Speaker 1: the immigration stuff. It's always so fascinating, Like why do 1011 00:57:30,560 --> 00:57:33,919 Speaker 1: you think these things aligned with Like maybe it's even 1012 00:57:33,960 --> 00:57:37,480 Speaker 1: like you recognize that other people who aren't white have 1013 00:57:37,560 --> 00:57:44,240 Speaker 1: invented things you like, like sombreros guys without Mexicans. How 1014 00:57:44,240 --> 00:57:46,280 Speaker 1: are you going to go to the cool coast you're 1015 00:57:46,280 --> 00:57:49,840 Speaker 1: able to go to the cool coast scamp. You're gonna 1016 00:57:49,840 --> 00:57:51,760 Speaker 1: have a bad time. You're gonna have a bad time 1017 00:57:51,800 --> 00:57:53,680 Speaker 1: with the cool coast scamp. You wouldn't got anywhere there 1018 00:57:53,760 --> 00:57:59,400 Speaker 1: playing the Benigh breathin baseball. Jeesus, that is fascinating. That 1019 00:57:59,520 --> 00:58:01,720 Speaker 1: was a twig. That was it. And now I know 1020 00:58:01,720 --> 00:58:06,480 Speaker 1: what MLMs too level marketing. Yeah, it's a really important 1021 00:58:06,480 --> 00:58:09,200 Speaker 1: in the politics of today. Yeah, I just hadn't heard 1022 00:58:09,280 --> 00:58:13,040 Speaker 1: that abbreviation Money Lives Matter. There is a direct line 1023 00:58:13,120 --> 00:58:17,520 Speaker 1: between the strategy behind the KKK and the strategy behind 1024 00:58:17,560 --> 00:58:19,960 Speaker 1: am Way, which is the source of the fortune of 1025 00:58:19,960 --> 00:58:24,920 Speaker 1: beth Sie of Vos. But we can't. We don't have 1026 00:58:24,960 --> 00:58:26,800 Speaker 1: time to talk about her. We don't have time to 1027 00:58:26,800 --> 00:58:30,760 Speaker 1: talk about her. Yeah, that sage us into the next episode. Yeah, 1028 00:58:30,840 --> 00:58:35,440 Speaker 1: we will be doing another thing very soon. Uh. Plugs, plugs, plugs, plugs, 1029 00:58:35,440 --> 00:58:43,000 Speaker 1: fus check us out on the internet, Twitter, Twitter, dot com, 1030 00:58:43,040 --> 00:58:45,880 Speaker 1: slash some more news. I was getting there, okay. It 1031 00:58:45,880 --> 00:58:48,520 Speaker 1: seemed like you were just like passing it off. No, no, no, 1032 00:58:48,680 --> 00:58:54,240 Speaker 1: you said on the internet. That's pretty um are YouTube show. 1033 00:58:54,360 --> 00:58:59,520 Speaker 1: Also some more news our podcast, even more news. Yep. 1034 00:58:59,720 --> 00:59:06,840 Speaker 1: That on the Twitter personal Twitter, it's Katie Stolen. We'll 1035 00:59:06,880 --> 00:59:09,560 Speaker 1: get good at this one day. Give them money. Some 1036 00:59:09,600 --> 00:59:15,080 Speaker 1: more news Patreon dollars to go to there, go to there. Um. 1037 00:59:15,280 --> 00:59:17,400 Speaker 1: You can find me on the internet at I right okay, 1038 00:59:17,440 --> 00:59:19,960 Speaker 1: on Twitter, I have a book called A Brief History 1039 00:59:19,960 --> 00:59:22,080 Speaker 1: of Ice. It's not about the plan. It's about me 1040 00:59:22,880 --> 00:59:26,000 Speaker 1: putting a friend in the hospital with dangerous drugs. It's fun, 1041 00:59:26,040 --> 00:59:30,320 Speaker 1: it's a good time. Everybody. Everybody enjoyed it. Twitter and Instagram. 1042 00:59:30,360 --> 00:59:33,160 Speaker 1: You can find this show at at Bastards pod uh 1043 00:59:33,440 --> 00:59:37,400 Speaker 1: website behind the Bastards dot com. Dorito's I Love You