 Meet the Klan!This is a clipping from a picture taken in 1870. You'll notice that these members of the Ku Klux Klan have their faces covered (as well they should!), but these are not the white conical masks and white gowns of the modern Klan. During the period of Reconstruction, the Klan was a new phenomenon. They had figured out that they needed to be anonymous and protected from being identified, but it was too early for them to have much in the way of organization or official uniforms. The Klan made its appearance in South Carolina around 1868-1870. The members were clerks, shopkeepers, or craftsmen, who worked at mundane jobs during the day and then came out to play at night. They made their own masks, found a bit of rope, or a club, or a fiery torch, and amused themselves by making threats and terrifying newly-freed slaves. The mysterious Klan member who visits Jonathan Grenville several times in Yankee Reconstructed is something of an anomaly, in that he operates on his own rather than as a part of a mob. He supports white supremacy and has no scruples about lynching a troublesome black man or a white man, either, for that matter. But he is also concerned that people understand why he does so, and that concern sets him apart. Will we ever know who he is? Perhaps. Most Klansmen were middle-aged white men, most of whom had not fought in the Civil War. Why? Because the real veterans of the Civil War were often embittered by the war experience and unwilling to have much to do with those who only played at continuing to fight. Those former soldiers who were physically able and willing to cause trouble were more likely to join bands of "red shirts" led by their former commanding officers. You've heard the description of a dog whose bark was worse than his bite. Well, that also describes the Klansmen. They were bullies who could be stymied by firm resistance. The Red Shirts, on the other hand seldom barked, but when they bit, they caused major damage. Both groups supported the Democratic Party and its efforts to keep Negroes from voting or owning property. Both hoped that somehow the Old South could be restored to its former glory. Both groups will play important roles in Yankee Reconstructed. |
