Module 2: Jim Crow and the KKK

Jim Crow laws, which enforced racial segregation in the Southern United States, were a product of the post-Reconstruction era, when federal protection for African Americans was dismantled after the end of Reconstruction in 1877. These laws institutionalized racial inequality, forcing Black Americans into second-class citizenship, and were a reaction to the progress made during Reconstruction.   These laws prevented African-Americans from holding public office, voting, marrying outside of their race, and entering 'whites-only' spaces.

During this period, the First Ku Klux Klan (KKK) emerged as a violent group that sought to maintain white supremacy and reverse the gains made by African Americans during Reconstruction. The Klan used terror, including lynching, intimidation, and other forms of violence, to suppress Black political participation and intimidate those seeking to assert their rights. Through these tactics, they aimed to preserve segregation and enforce the racial hierarchy that kept African Americans disenfranchised.  When Reconstruction came to an end in the 1870s, the KKK was able to destroy much of the gains for African-Americans and largely dissolved itself, its purpose complete.

The Second KKK, which rose to prominence in the 1910s and 1920s, represented a resurgence of white supremacist ideologies and expanded its reach beyond the South. Unlike the First Klan, the Second Klan targeted not only African Americans but also immigrants, Catholics, and Jews, seeking to promote a vision of American society that was exclusively white and Protestant. This period saw an increase in racial violence, including lynchings, which became a powerful symbol of the South's commitment to white dominance and racial segregation. The Second Klan was also politically active, with members gaining influence in local and state governments, reinforcing segregation and promoting policies that kept African Americans in positions of inequality.

By the mid-20th century, the Third KKK emerged as part of the backlash to the growing Civil Rights Movement, which aimed to dismantle segregation and secure equal rights for Black Americans. The rise of the Third Klan was fueled by the advancements made during the Civil Rights Movement, including landmark decisions like Brown v. Board of Education and the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Although less influential than its predecessors, the Third Klan continued to use violence, intimidation, and threats to maintain white supremacy and resist the progress being made towards racial equality. Despite these efforts, the Civil Rights Movement gained momentum, leading to significant strides in the struggle for freedom and equality for African Americans. Jim Crow laws were eventually dismantled, but the legacy of racial inequality and the terror of groups like the KKK left an indelible mark on American society.