Southern racists were same as today's terrorist bombers

[The Straight Story]

Southern racists were same as today's terrorist bombers

By Stanley Crouch

It has now become common wisdom that the practices of Southern racists were no less than terrorist acts. The bombings, beatings and murders were used to maintain the power of whites over blacks. In essence, it was a legal issue. Those rednecks were intent on making sure that the equality spelled out in the Constitution was never taken seriously below the Mason-Dixon Line.

Since the Ku Klux Klan and its various offshoots were dominated in number by what has long been called "white trash" -- crude, poorly educated, lower-class men who were blue-collar at best -- what we actually saw in their barbaric acts was the hysterical desire to be appreciated or respected as full white men, not the dregs of society who were never accepted, appreciated or thought of as equal to whatever might pass as a Southern aristocracy.

These men never married the boss's daughter, and their own daughters never married the sons of the boss. They were separated by social conventions.

So the only way they could get that good old feeling of being equal was in the symbolic garb of a white sheet, or in the cowardly acts that proved to the world that they were not the kind of white men who were going to let those blacks abuse Southern tradition by getting out of their place, which was always supposed to be beneath the feet of the white South.

http://www.detnews.com/2005/editorial/0506/24/A11-226097.htm

[etherealtruth]

1. Terrorists and dregs of society ...

Throw in evil, if you're inclined to make that kind of judgment and that sums it up. Throw in governmental and societal complicity (often participation)and the description becomes more accurate.

[pnb]

2. What about northern racists?

Oh I forgot, there has never been one of those before. :sarcasm:

[Kolesar]

3. Indiana had a KKK government early in the last century

I would describe that period as the second wave of the KKK. Anybody who wanted to participate in politics "had to be in the KKK". It was sort of a social club, or a place to make connections. I don't think it was as heinous or criminal as the KKK of Mississippi.

[bemildred]

4. Good point. nt