Chamblee54

This is a repost from 2016. That year, The Washington Post ran the story described below. Many people saw corporate media as having an obligation to promote the candidacy of Hillary Clinton. This year, WAPO chose not to endorse any candidate. This angered many people. Compared to how WAPO conducted itself in 2016, not endorsing a candidate might be the best alternative.
In the last days of the 2016 election, people began to say that Donald John Trump was endorsed by the KKK. @DefiantLionUK Don’t forget President-elect Donald #Trump is a hate-filled, #KKK endorsed, #racist & that simply can’t be tolerated #TrumpProtest. @Eti_Verde Vote! American democracy in action! Stop Trump & his white nationalist KKKlan!
The consensus was that DJT was endorsed by the KKK, and that DJT is a racist. Therefore, if you support DJT, you support the KKK, and you are a racist. There is a name for this type of logical fallacy. The net result was the election of DJT.
It is tough to say how much impact this KKK talk had on the election. By November 8, America had been hit over the head with political talk for two years. The various factions tend to live in echo chambers, where they only hear information that reinforces what they already think. People say what sounds good to them. If someone does not agree, then they are a racist. People seem to assume that their neighbor will agree with them, if only you insult them enough.
Google “kkk endorses donald trump.” The top result is in the Washington Post, KKK’s official newspaper supports Donald Trump for president. “It is called the Crusader — and it is one of the most prominent newspapers of the Ku Klux Klan. Under the banner “Make America Great Again,” the entire front page of the paper’s current issue is devoted to a lengthy defense of Trump’s message — an embrace some have labeled a de facto endorsement.”
There is no link to the endorsement. If you google the Crusader, you find this. The Crusader is a tacky little newspaper, headquartered in Harrison, Arkansas. It is “The official Newspaper of The Knights Party.” You get “4 Big Quarterly Issues” for $20. “The Charge on your Credit Card Statement will show up as Christian Books and Things.” … If you google Knights Party, you will see a lot of links to ADL, SPLC, and FBI. If you are willing to scroll a bit on duckduckgo, you can see information about the Knights Party. It is not known if this is the same group that published “The Crusader,” or if this newspaper is published in 2024.
The truth is that the Ku Klux Klan is an obsolete movement. There are a few dozen chapters, who often do not get along. The hand wringing by “liberals” empowers the Klan. If people would ignore the Klan, they would go away. The Chinese bed sheet manufacturers will miss them.
“The KKK is split into many smaller subdivisions, explained (KKK Imperial Wizard Frank) Ancona, and often times, banished members of a larger branch will attempt to start their own. Ancona believes this is the case with Murray, who is not even known to the Traditionalist American Knights. “He basically made up his own name,” Ancona said, explaining that Murray may not even be on his birth certificate…. Half of them don’t have the rituals for our ceremonies.” Frank Ancona died in 2017.
Despite it’s fierce reputation as a “racist terrorist” organization, the KKK is in bad shape. It has less credibility than the Westboro Baptist Church. The custom of wearing bedsheets makes them the easy target for jokes. The ADL and SPLC say the membership of the KKK is dwindling.
A good argument could be made that anonymous publicity is helping the KKK. It makes bed sheets look dangerous. While the three digital stooges of twitter/facebook/tiktok are focused on bed sheets, more dangerous white (and other color) hate groups are operating in darkness. With people fascinated with who is under the bed sheets, people that can do damage are buying ammunition, buying elections, and committing genocide in West Asia.
Pictures today are from The Library of Congress. These men were Union soldiers, in the War Between the States. They did not post on facebook.