The Ku-Klux Klan

New Zealand Tablet, 29 December 1921, Page 31

The Ku-Klux Klan

When the newspapers first reported the recrudescence of this fantastic ; organisation,' : our American people merely smiled 71 with that good-natured tolerance which* is so characteristic of them, and dismissed the matter from their thought. But; when its appearances became more frequent and when ! sinister activities for ' which they ere reputed responsible showed an increase, men were moved to inquire more carefully into the aim and methods of the “Invisible-Empire.”

The modern “Klan,” we believe, claims no continuity with the band of Civil War times. It has simply borrowed the name and paraphernalia of that society. In the days of reconstruction it was impossible in many places in the South to secure justice to the great body of the inhabitants through the- 'courts. “Carpet-bag” political judges and incompetent provost marshals administered laws of their own making in a high-handed fashion. To protect their homes and their. families the people formed an organisation whose weird name, fantastic attire, secret meetings and sudden appearances were calculated to strike terror into just that class of miscreants against whom they moved. Without offering a complete justification for the movement, it is easy to understand its genesis under the then - existing conditions. And the greatest thing that can be said in its favor is that it disappeared from view when the conditions which brought it into being were past. With the return to normal, name and thing went out of being. But why the revival?- Or why the foundation of a new organisation which takes upon itself the functions of a law and order committee? We are living neither in frontier conditions nor in a state of anarchy. Despite occasional miscarriages of justice, our' courts are functioning; our officers of the-law are floing their duty; there is no organised violence against which the ordinary machinery of the Government is unable to prevail. There must therefore be some other purpose in its existence. And the conviction is growing that this purpose is an unworthy, and an un-American one. The. condemnation of the Klan comes not from one source only, but from Catholic and Methodist alike, from Freemason and American Legion, in short, from every element which believes in our country and its institutions. Bishop Gallagher, of Detroit, has admirably expressed the sentiment of many concerning it, when he said:

“I can’t see where there is room in this country.for a secret organisation that attempts to usurp the functions of the Government and of the courts. There is in human nature a strong attraction for the mysterious, the weird, and the awesome and the men at the head of this organisation utilise this to go through the pockets of the boobs. It will probably lead to counter, organisations, and this may result in bloodshed and internal strife. It is the duty of the Government-to put down any -organisation that attempts to usurp its authority and supplement its work as if the Government had been a failure in the past. .' No one denies the right of men to call themselves by outlandish titles, to dress themselves up in hideous array, or to lay down any conditions they may please for membership in an organisation of their own founding, but these rights do not carry with them the further right to take upon themselves the functions of government, or to call in question the patriotism of any section of our citizenry without giving, adequate proof of the charges made. Catholics have no objection to being denied admission to the ranks of the Ku-Klux Klan. They feel rather honored thereby. • They feel that Archbishop Hayes’ statement, “I am not at all worried i about the Ku-Klux Klan in New York. It is a greater menace to the country than it is to the Catholic Church. The Ku-Klux Klan stands for all that is un-American. Its exposure is a fine public service,” expresses their views. *

It is easy , for the “Klansmen” to deny the outrages which have been attributed to their organisation, but its very secrecy makes difficult proof that there is any argument in their assertion.

The New York World enumerates in one Article four killings, one case of mutilation,-one*instance of branding with acid, 41 floggings, 27 .cases of tarring, and-feathering, and five kidnappings for which the Ku-Klux Klan was responsible in community opinion. - . ■

■ . • ## ■ >■ •, _'• _ . „ j : The Department ; of Justice is now', making a thorough

investigation and we are confident that when the sunlight is let in, the Ku-Klux Klan, like every other toadstool growth which thrives only in the dank soil of terrorism and superstition, will disappear as rapidly as it rose. It is our opinion that it has already been complimented with too much free advertising. We can easily afford to let it die of its own weakness. —The Missionary.