Formed: 1865. Origin: Tennessee, United States of America. Years active: 1st Klan: 1865-1870s, 2nd Klan: 1915-1944, 3rd Klan: 1946-2000, 4th Klan: 2006-present. Founders: John C. Lester, James R. Crowe, John D. Kennedy, Calvin Jones, Richard R. Reed, Frank O. McCord Beliefs: The re-establishment of white supremacy. Targets: Initially African-Americans and white Americans who supported them. Then Jews, Catholics, homosexuals and immigrants. Other Facts: · Names for their members include ‘grand dragons’, ‘grand Cyclops’, ‘grand titans’ and ‘grand wizards’. · The first KKK was destroyed by Ulysses S. Grant’s prosecution and enforcement under the Civil Rights Act 1871. · The 1915 film The Birth of a Nation, which glorified the first Klan and portrayed them as a heroic force, was the first film to ever be screened at the White House. · The Klan bought Lanier University in Atlanta in 1921 so that it could teach “pure, 100 percent Americanism”. However, it had to close after a year of Klan ownership due to poor levels of enrolment. By Zach Emmanuel Read More: A history of the Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan: A Cult College students in trouble over KKK impersonations KKK Florida prison workers plotted to kill black inmate |