Talk:Ku Klux Klan

Not

I object to saying that the KKK is Christian. How can an anti-Semitic, racist, fascist murder group be even close to Christian? All true Christians love the Jews! —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.237.97.73 (talk) 16:49, 27 June 2009 (UTC)

They believe they are Christian, and in America, you cannot change someone's beliefs, even if they seem morally wrong. I object to this institutions statements that they are christian as well, but there is not anything I can do about it, which defeats the purpose of declaring in order to persuade some change be brought about.

69.201.159.52 (talk) 15:58, 12 July 2009 (UTC)

Generally agree with IP 69, and want to add that they were indeed christian as individuals, and where not so much ignoring their faith when performing the lynchings and such, as they were misinterpreting it. This is the same way hitler considered himself christian, and convinced most of germany that his acts were chrisitian, and that to oppose him would be un-christian.Drew Smith What I've done 01:53, 4 August 2009 (UTC)

Drew,

Hitler & the Nazis absolutely did not consider themselves to be Christians or religious in any way. They were as "Godless" as Lenin and Stalin.--TL36 (talk) 21:40, 29 August 2009 (UTC)

This is completely wrong. the nazi movement were comprised by christians, and was supported by the churches. Himmler tried to found a cult based on mysticism within the SS, but the average nazi was as good a churchgoer as anyone else. As for Hitlers personal feelings:

"My feelings as a Christian points me to my Lord and Savior as a fighter. It points me to the man who once in loneliness, surrounded by a few followers, recognized these Jews for what they were and summoned men to fight against them and who, God's truth! was greatest not as a sufferer but as a fighter. In boundless love as a Christian and as a man I read through the passage which tells us how the Lord at last rose in His might and seized the scourge to drive out of the Temple the brood of vipers and adders. How terrific was His fight for the world against the Jewish poison. To-day, after two thousand years, with deepest emotion I recognize more profoundly than ever before the fact that it was for this that He had to shed His blood upon the Cross. As a Christian I have no duty to allow myself to be cheated, but I have the duty to be a fighter for truth and justice... And if there is anything which could demonstrate that we are acting rightly it is the distress that daily grows. For as a Christian I have also a duty to my own people.

-Adolf Hitler, in a speech on 12 April 1922 (Norman H. Baynes, ed. The Speeches of Adolf Hitler, April 1922-August 1939, Vol. 1 of 2, pp. 19-20, Oxford University Press, 1942) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.252.232.98 (talk) 16:48, 12 December 2009 (UTC)

To answer the original poster, there has actually been a long history of conflict between Christians and Jews, see Christianity and antisemitism. Many German churches were decorated with the Judensau. A quote from the antisemitism article for you:

“ Without centuries of Christian antisemitism, Hitlers passionate hatred would never have been so fervently echoed...because for centuries Christians have held Jews collectively responsible for the death of Jesus. On Good Friday Jews, have in times past, cowered behind locked doors with fear of a Christian mob seeking 'revenge' for deicide. Without the poisoning of Christian minds through the centuries, the holocaust is unthinkable.[3] The dissident Catholic priest Hans Küng has written that "Nazi anti-Judaism was the work of godless, anti-Christian criminals. But it would not have been possible without the almost two thousand years' pre-history of 'Christian' anti-Judaism... ”

So in conclusion, yes, the idea of a Christian organisation like the KKK being antisemitic is not that surprising. Josh Keen (talk) 02:44, 9 October 2009 (UTC)

Back in the 1920's some smaller KKK groups formed in the north that were strong Christians. Some of theses groups were not against blacks but were against Italians. It depends largely on geography and crime in the area the way some of these groups developed. This was during a period when there was strong mafia control in some neighborhoods that these short lived KKK groups were trying to eliminate.--Windowasher (talk) 19:59, 14 October 2009 (UTC)

This is basly confused. Almost all of the second Klan hated Italians: the KKK hated all immigrants and all Catholics, and the Italians were both. A considerable number of Italians were lynched by Klansmen, and it had nothing to do with alleged Mafia connections. The Klan also considered itself as strongly Protestant Christian, and would not accept any other religions; that was true regardless of whether it was concentrating its hatred against blacks, Italians, or any other minority. Pirate Dan (talk) 16:58, 20 October 2009 (UTC)

Dud link

The link at http://reactor-core.org/original-kkk.html does not connect to anything related to the Klan. The only reference to the Klan that I found at that site is at http://reactor-core.org/imperium.html - wertperch (talk) 04:08, 31 October 2009 (UTC).

KKK Australia branch

Apparently a branch of the KKK in was formed in Australia back in 1999 according to this BBC News article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/358783.stm

Shouldn't this be mentioned in the article? --Cab88 (talk) 22:24, 4 November 2009 (UTC)

there's plenty of articles about klan presence in Australia. http://www.smh.com.au/national/we-have-infiltrated-party-kkk-20090709-der4.html http://www.news.com.au/kkk-offshoot-targets-australia/story-e6frfkp9-111111348150 http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2007/07/06/5218_news.html http://silverfernlotie.net/

There should be a headline about international klan chapters, since it's not only in America these days but in many other countries like Scotland, England, Australia, New Zealand & Germany. --Vernex3 (talk) 22:09, 8 December 2009 (UTC)

Conflicting data for peak membership

The opening paragraphs of the article state the peak membership in the 1920s was 4-5 million. The sidebar shows it to be 6 million. Both have footnotes referencing independent sources. Does anyone know which is correct? LarryJeff (talk) 22:50, 9 November 2009 (UTC)

Derivation of the name?

What's the etymology of the name? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 88.213.44.66 (talk) 04:02, 10 November 2009 (UTC)

That's in the 1st paragraph of the section "First Klan; Creation." It's from the Greek word for "circle." LarryJeff (talk) 18:08, 10 November 2009 (UTC) It also promotes brothership. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 167.135.1.171 (talk) 18:18, 12 January 2010 (UTC)

Founding

I may have been misinformed, but the way I was taught it, the KKK wasn't originally a racist hate group. I thought was just a fraternity for Civil War vets to get together and talk about the war, but then some renegade members starting lynching blacks and that the eventually, the lynnching Klansman outnumbered the legit Klansman and that the first KKK was disbanded by the very people who created it because it had turned into something that it wasn't supposed to be. Like I said, I could've been misinformed, but if I wasn't, should the article actually mention it? Emperor001 (talk) 23:20, 21 December 2009 (UTC)

My dad told me the same thing more than once, so there may be at least a grain of truth there, but without a documented reference I don't think it's appropriate to include. LarryJeff (talk) 00:37, 22 December 2009 (UTC)

I think I once saw a History Channel program that confirms this, but I don't know how to cite it. Emperor001 (talk) 04:06, 22 December 2009 (UTC)