Do NOT Read This Book At Bedtime!

Posted on by under Book reviews, education, History, Political commentary, Racism & Bigotry, Social commentary

I recently started reading a new book, “A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them” by Timothy Egan.  The opening pages of this book chilled me, not only for what happened 100 years ago, but the parallels to today that even the blindest of people cannot fail to notice.  Here’s just one brief excerpt that exemplifies the connection between the Ku Klux Klan in 1923 and the maga movement in 2023 …

“No one can deny that the United States is a white Protestant country,” wrote the Fiery Cross, the weekly newspaper of the Indiana Klan.  Stephenson’s press organ was filled with scare stories of those seeking to find a home in a new land.  “We receive at our ports of immigration an ignorant and disreputable omnium-gatherum of scorbutic and vicious spawn, people who possess neither blood nor brain, unclean and uncomprehending foes of the American ideals.”  The governor of Georgia, Clifford Walker, told a Klan rally in 1924 that the United States should “build a wall of steel, a wall as high as heaven” against immigrants.

Build a wall … sound familiar?

The story tells how the KKK grew to massive numbers in the mid-west in the 1920s, led by one man, D.C. Stephenson.  The man himself reminds me much of the leader of the maga-clan in the U.S. today, one Donald Trump.  Stephenson was an abuser of women, had a very thin skin and could not handle criticism, and was a cruel man through and through.  Page after page tells a story that is chilling in its very familiarity.

At a Fourth of July rally outside Kokomo, Ind., in 1923, the Klan attracted up to 200,000 people — the largest gathering in the history of the group, according to the Klan newspaper. A few years later, a crowd would gather in Marion, Ind., to pose with the corpses of two Black men who had been lynched by a mob. No one was ever brought to justice for the vigilante killing.

The hooded order of the 1920s moved quickly from basements in the Midwest to the halls of Congress. At its peak, the Klan claimed four U.S. senators as sworn members, and dozens under its control in the House of Representatives. By 1925, the ultimate political design seemed to be within reach: a Klan from sea to sea, north to south, anchored in the White House. [Emphasis added]

The Ku Klux Klan parade down Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington on Aug. 8, 1925. (AP)

I’m only about halfway through the book (I will likely write a more comprehensive review once I’ve finished), but I highly recommend it to anyone who cares about the direction this nation is heading.  In fact, I think it should be required reading for everyone over the age of 12 in the U.S.!  If I were wealthy, I would send copies to every high school student in the state of Florida!  If you decide to read the book, I have one word of caution:  DO NOT READ IT AT BEDTIME!!! 

36 thoughts on “Do NOT Read This Book At Bedtime!”

  2. So very, very, scary. Listening to Trumps last speech and his talk of “Illegals” flooding the county is terrifying. I don’t want to think what will happen if he is elected again.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Same here, Carla, and that is why we MUST all do whatever we can to ensure he is not elected again! Or DeSantis, either, for at the core, he is no better. Sigh. What a mess.

      Like

  3. History tends to return as the present day when we least want it, and goes in circles. The current circle seems to be a ‘remake’ of the 1930s, with the rise of Fascism and overt racism in so many countries.
    Best wishes, Pete.

    Liked by 3 people

    • We never learn, do we? I lean toward socialism, but not necessarily authoritarianism, for I do think people should have choices. I think, though, that one person’s “choice” should not be allowed to interfere with another person’s. As I’ve long said, your right to freedom stops when it encounters and steps on my toes. And vice versa.

      Liked by 1 person

      • This links up with my last comment on your ‘Brains in the GOP’ post Jill.
        It’s the trouble with authoritarianism. A great case can be put on paper. It’s the folk working the system who spoil it.
        I’ve gone through scenarios, making choices and considering the reactions and it usually ends up with some sort of Stalinist set up or a very moribund, stifling society where abuses by a few go unpunished.

        Liked by 1 person

  5. Thanks for sharing. Historian Jon Meacham noted in his book “Soul of America” that 25 Senators and over 100 Congressman were affiliated with the KKK in the early 1930s. That is a scary thought. What turned the tide is the attacks and criticism of Jews, as that was a bridge too far. Unfortunately, it would take 30 more years of Jim Crow to see major change for Blacks. Keith

    Liked by 3 people

    • It IS a scary thought, and I wonder today how many have ties to hate groups such as the KKK, Proud Boys, etc. I do recommend this book … it’s an eye-opener, especially in the parallels to what we’re seeing today.

      Like

  6. Apparently, the KKK had a huge following in Buffalo in the 20s. My grandmother was teaching school & she was harassed because she was Catholic. My grandfather said that it all ended when the Buffalo Evening News (as it was then) published the names & pictures of the members of the KKK. I am sure that it didn’t end but turned into another form. There’s a lot of racists around here. That kind of racism is generational.

    Liked by 3 people

    • Good job by the Buffalo Evening News!!! That’s the way to drive them back under their rocks!

      I did a bit of digging and it turns out the KKK still has a presence in every state, some more than others. My own state of Ohio has a couple of large KKK groups, one that disrupted a drag show in the capitol, Columbus, just this afternoon with threats, guns, knives, etc. At one time, the KKK was considered mostly over and done, but they seem to be on the rise of late, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center who tracks hate groups. But, as you say, there are also other, newer groups popping up. Sigh.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. Horrible what had happened in the past, and arrived again. ;-/ Thanks for the recommendation of the book, Jill!
    Here in Bavaria they are discussing the accomodation of refugees, and have fear of them. Unbelievable, as many of the Germans, especially Bavarians came here from the former German territories in Eastern Europe. Don’t they remember how the had got help????? xx Michael

    Liked by 3 people

    • The Chinese believe that history is cyclic, and I’m beginning to wonder if they’re right. We humans do not learn from our past mistakes, but just keep on repeating them over and over again. The book is eye-opening and I do highly recommend it, but it is also deeply disturbing, especially seeing the parallels to what’s happening today.

      It seems that most western nations have an inherent fear of refugees, and I have long believed that the entire populist movement began with the Arab Spring movement that sent many refugees to the west. And yet, as you say, many in your country have ancestors who were refugees, and here in the U.S., everyone except the Indigenous People came from people who emigrated here from elsewhere. No, they don’t remember, don’t even acknowledge it. Sigh. xx

      Liked by 1 person

  9. I live in a small rural Ohio community, population 354. In the 1920s, the KKK had a huge presence in this area. In 1925, the Church of God 2 blocks from my house held a Klan funeral. 500 people attended, I have a picture of the KKK marching right down the middle of the street in my community, right by my house. We hide our racism better these days, but Klan thinking lives on. Last summer, my wife and I were eating at a local ice cream parlor. We were outside, standing near several black women from Defiance College. Suddenly, a truck flying confederate and Trump flags slowed down so the young white right side passenger could roll down the window and hurl the N word several times before speeding off. Disgusting, to say the least.

    Liked by 3 people

  10. ““build a wall of steel, a wall as high as heaven””

    One almost wishes they succeeded back then. Would’ve spared the world a lot of useless wars in years to come. I know it sounds bad but imagine …. just imagine.

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.