Ku Klux Klan

Ku Klux Klan is a group of white secret societies who oppose the advancement of blacks, Jews, and other mi­nority groups. The Ku Klux Kln also called the KKK or the Klan, is active in the United States and in Canada. It often uses violence to achieve its aims.

The Ku Klux Klan was formed in Tennessee, U.S.A., in 1865 or 1866. Its first leader, or Grand Wizard, was Na­than Bedford Forrest, a former general in the Confeder­ate Army during the American Civil War (1861-1865). The group took its name from the Greek word kyklos, mean­ing circle, and the English word clan.

Klan members threatened, beat, and murdered many blacks and their white sympathizers in the Southern States. To hide their identity, members wore robes and tall pointed hoods. They also draped sheets over their horses, and rode at night. They burned tall crosses at their outdoor meetings to frighten nonmembers.

The Ku Klux Klan has had four major periods of activ­ity: from the 1860's to the 1870's, from 1915 to 1944, from the late 1940's to the early 1970's, and since the mid- 1970's. In the mid-1920's, it had more than 2 million members and was a powerful political force in the South. It has continued to oppose racial integration. Since the 1970's, new leaders have tried to give the or­ganization a more respectable image. But declining sup­port, and prosecutions for illegal activities, have re­duced membership to about 6,000. Most of these members live in the Southern States of the U.S.