The end of the Civil War left a fearful and resentful South struggling to understand the changes the war had wrought. Those seeking a focus for their anger quickly turned on recently emancipated blacks. Chief among them was the newly formed Ku Klux Klan.
Some of those targeted by the Klan’s murderous activities turned to armed resistance and retaliation as their only resort.
This volume examines the actions of the Ku Klux Klan between the years of 1865 and 1899: how the organization sponsored violence against former slaves, and how that violence eventually led to the formation of armed defensive groups. The author considers both the history and the sociology behind these events. Appendices provide excerpts from a variety of primary sources including contemporary newspaper articles, correspondence and personal diaries.

Kwando Mbiassi Kinshasa is a professor of African American Studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York.

Kwando Mbiassi Kinshasa
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 262
Bibliographic Info: 17 photos, 8 tables, appendices, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2009 [2006]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-4100-6
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments      vii

Preface      1

Introduction      5

1. Things Fall Apart      13

2. The Interminable Conflict      51

3. Dialogues on Human Rights Abuses      84

4. Themes on Racial Conflict      111

5. Organized Resistance      156

6. Literary Provocateur: A Case Study of John A. Leland      179

Epilogue      201

Appendices

A. A Planter’s Letter to The New York Times      209

B. Excerpt from The Prostrate State by James Pike      212

C. Testimony of Elias Thomson Regarding Klan Activity      214

D. Remarks of Judge Hugh Bond Regarding Klan Activity      217

E. Excerpt from the Oral History of Mary Anderson      219

F. “The Lowrey Bandits”

G. Letter from General John C. Gorman Regarding the Lowrie Bandits      224

Chapter Notes      227

Bibliography      243

Index      249