Ku Klux Klan

"Ku Klux Klan" is the name of a number of past and present fraternal organizations in the United States that have advocated white supremacy and anti-Semitism; and in the past century, anti-Catholicism, and nativism.

The Ku Klux Klan today

Although often still discussed in contemporary American politics as representing the quintessential "fringe" end of the far-right spectrum, today the group only exists in the form of a number of very isolated, scattered "supporters" that probably do not number more than a few thousand. In a 2002 report on "Extremism in America", the Jewish Anti-Defamation League wrote "Today, there is no such thing as the Ku Klux Klan. Fragmentation, decentralization and decline have continued unabated." However, they also noted that the "need for justification runs deep in the disaffected and is unlikely to disappear, regardless of how low the Klan's fortunes eventually sink."

Related Topics:
Far-right - 2002 - Anti-Defamation League

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Today the only known former member of the Klan to hold a Federal office in the United States is Senator Robert Byrd, who says he "deeply regrets" joining the Klan over half a century ago, when he was about 24 years old. There are currently no known members of the Klan who also hold a Federal office.

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Some of the larger KKK organizations currently in operation include:

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• Church of the American Knights of the Ku Klux Klan{{ref|adl-knights}}
• Imperial Klans of America
• Knights of the White Kamelia

There is a vast number of smaller organizations.{{ref|smaller-klans}}

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As of 2005, there were an estimated 3,000 Klan members, divided among 158 chapters of a variety of splinter organizations, about two-thirds of which were in former Confederate states. The other third are primarily in the Midwest region. {{ref|splc-hate}}{{ref|adl}}{{ref|current-membership}}

Related Topics:
Confederate - Midwest region

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The ACLU has provided legal support to various factions of the KKK in defense of their First Amendment rights to hold public rallies, parades, and marches, and their right to field political candidates.

Related Topics:
ACLU - First Amendment

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In a July 2005 incident, a Hispanic man's house was burned down in Hamilton, Ohio, after accusations that he sexually assaulted a nine-year-old white girl. Klan members in Klan robes showed up afterward to distribute pamphlets.

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