The first Ku Klux Klan (KKK) operated between the years 1865 and 1871. Within this relatively short period of about five years, the KKK experienced a rise and fall, but was eventually disbanded in 1871 following the recognition of a federal grand jury describing the KKK as a terrorist organization. After the KKK rose to fame following the collapse of the confederacy, it went on to dominate most of the southern America. Due to their rapid expanse, Ulysses S. Grant agreed to the passage of the KKK Act and the Enforcement Act of 1870, two key laws that led to the fall of the first Ku Klux Klan in 1871. This paper examines the rise and fall of the first KKK.
Rise of the First KKK
The KKK first came into existence in the 24th of December 1865 in Pulaski, Tennessee by a group of confederate veterans. The civil war that had left much of the southern states in dilapidated conditions so it is worth noting that this was the year Reconstruction began. The name Ku Klux Klan was coined from a Greek word ‘Kyklos’ (which means circle) and the English word clan. After the civil war which culminated with a breakage of the
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Additionally, their experience in the confederate military came in handy with their operations including attacking their enemies when they least expected it and causing tension and fear among. Their agenda in doing all this was to discourage the postwar reconstruction as well as stop the black community from accessing power and wealth, including political office. With the emancipation of African Americans, it was feared that black people would one day rule over them, hence the white supremacist KKK worked tirelessly and forcefully to stop black people from accessing certain rights including a right to education, the right to vote, and a right to carry and keep