Women of the Ku Klux Klan

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WKKK at a Klan parade in 1928

Women of the Ku Klux Klan , also Women's Ku Klux Klan ( WKKK for short ), is and was the name of various women's organizations of the Ku Klux Klan . The term also describes the entirety of women in the Ku Klux Klan. They mainly focused on the clan's moral, civic and educational agenda, but also participated in disputes about race , class , ethnicity , gender and religion. The wedding of the WKKK was in the 1920s. At that time the organization existed in every state, with the largest associations in Ohio , Pennsylvania , Indiana and Arkansas . The WKKK accepted white Protestants born in the USA from the age of 16. The main difference between the women's organization and the men's organization is that it does not use violent means.

history

Emergence

The clan's first women's organization was formed in the mid-1860s and was founded by James CN Chambers and Rosie Chappell. It existed for about 10 years. Although women were not admitted as practicing members of the clan, for the first KKK they served as symbols of racial and sexual superiority that were protected by the men of the KKK. In general, women of friends and widows in the first years of the clan were assigned a special need for protection, the granting of which was mandatory, although this naturally only applied to white women. Black, inferior white women and women who were considered promiscuous , on the other hand, were disliked, attacked, and sometimes raped. Some women supported the clan by sewing the costumes or providing clothing.

Second phase

The second phase of the Ku Klux Klan began in the early 1920s. Women of the Ku Klux Klan was founded in 1923 as an aid organization under the KKK and headquartered in Little Rock , Arkansas. Like the Klan, the WKKK was anti-Jewish , anti-Catholic , xenophobic and against blacks . They weren't quite as violent as the male clan, but they too used some violence to achieve their goals. The WKKK went under with the Klan due to financial problems and internal fighting in the late 1940s.

Third phase

In the third phase of the Ku Klux Klan, which began in the 1960s, women played only a minor role. In the south, the clan consisted mainly of less educated and financially disadvantaged men. The few women who worked in the clan were treated equally with men, so a special women's organization was not required.

Situation today

Today women are a natural part of the normal Ku Klux Klan. They are able to get into management positions and there are no longer any restrictions.

recruitment

During the 1920s the activism of women in the largest, mainly due to the advances in was equality of the sexes. By giving women their own voice, it was also possible for them to organize themselves in the clan. Not only did the WKKK consist of wives of members of the clan, but many joined the clan against the will of their husbands. Many women felt threatened by African Americans and foreigners. The WKKK hired recruits and organizers, especially in those areas where the male part of the clan was strongly represented.

Today, compared to this time, far less effort is made to recruit women. Even if they have largely equal rights in the clan, the highest positions are almost exclusively occupied by men who also pay attention to their retention of power and push women from management positions.

Actions

Klanswomen were primarily involved in organizing rallies, marches, clan festivals and fairs. They tried to strengthen the base of the organization and to recruit new members. They also called for a boycott of business people who did not cooperate with the clan. They were also involved in important positions in the clan, which saw itself as a Protestant organization. They worked as helpers at weddings, Christian ceremonies and funerals. They were also involved in public schools, where they gave Bible studies , ran for important positions or campaigned against Catholic teachers. They also stood up for the Klan-affine candidates during the election campaign and spread negative propaganda against the unpleasant candidate.

Conflicts within the clan

During the second phase there were repeated clashes between the two clan organizations. In particular, there was a dispute about equality within the clan. Some problems of financial mismanagement and illegal practices have even been brought to justice. Many men categorically rejected women in the clan because it was said to be inconsistent with the clan's beliefs. However, the Klan was actually more progressive than the rest of US society on equality. Many other political organizations made fun of the Klan for giving women so much leverage and for the women in the Klan neglecting their household.

In the present day new issues arose. The clan today is considered morally conservative and opposes divorce . Many members also believe in the authority of men in politics, but also in the household. Many Klan women feel neglected and cut off by the organization. Many active clan women therefore do not want their own daughters to get involved in the clan.

literature

  • Kathleen M. Blee: Women of the Klan . University of California Press, Berkeley, CA, ISBN 0-520-07876-4 .
  • Kathleen Blee: Women in the 1920s: Ku Klux Klan Movement . In: Feminist Studies. 17th year, 1/1991, JSTOR 3178170 , pp. 57-77.
  • Glenn Feldman: Keepers of the Hearth: Women, the Klan, and Traditional Family Values . In: B. Clayton, John Salmond: Lives Full of Struggle and Triumph . University Press of Florida, Gainesville 2003, ISBN 0-8130-2675-X , pp. 150-180.
  • Martha Hodes : The Sexualization of Reconstruction Politics . In: Journal of the History of Sexuality. 3 (1993) JSTOR 3704014 , pp. 402-417.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Glen Felman: Keepers of the Hearth: Women, the Klan, and Traditional Family Values . In: B. Clayton, John Salmond: Lives Full of Struggle and Triumph . University Press of Florida, Gainesville 2003, ISBN 0-8130-2675-X , pp. 150-180.
  2. ^ Kathleen Blee: Women in the 1920s: Ku Klux Klan Movement . In: Feminist Studies. 17th year, 1/1991, JSTOR 3178170 , pp. 57-77.
  3. ^ Kathleen Blee: The Gendered Organization of Hate: Women in the US Ku Klux Klan . In: P. Bacchetta, Margaret Power: Right-Wing Women . Routledge, New York 2002, ISBN 0-415-92777-3 , p. 104.
  4. ↑ Martha Hodes: The sexualization of Reconstruction Politics . In: Journal of the History of Sexuality 3 (1993) JSTOR 3704014 , pp. 402-417.
  5. ↑ a b c d e f g Kathleen M. Blee: Women of the Klan . University of California Press, Berkeley CA, ISBN 0-520-07876-4 .