Klansville USA Today (Documentary)

Klansville U.S.A. was associated with the Klu Klux Klan. The Klu Klux Klan was established after the American Civil War. According to www.pbs.org, "Following the American Civil War, decommissioned Confederate soldiers in Pulaski, Tennessee established the Klu Klux Klan in 1865 as a fraternal social club." This was a violent group of people. They did not want slavery to end, and they did not believe that all men are created equal. They were very violent towards African Americans. Klansville U.S.A. was a film that really explained and showed what the Klu Klux Klan was all about.

As stated above the Klu Klux Klan did not believe in all men being created equal. They specifically treated African Americans poorly. According to www.pbs.org, "In 1915, D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation romanticized the Klan, portraying their violence towards African Americans as justifiable and necessary to restore order in a chaotic South." The Klu Klux Klan did not want African Americans to be granted the rights to freedom. This film Klansville USA definitely showed you just how much the Klu Klux Klan did not want the African Americans to progress at all.

Eventually the Klu Klux Klan had died down for a little bit. This film Klansville USA caused Klans to come back together in the 1920s. According to www.pbs.org, "The enormous popularity of the film sparked a Klan revival in the 1920s, and by 1925, four million Americans claimed membership. But bad press and power struggles tore the group apart again in the 1930s." The Klu Klux Klan was a very large and powerful group. 

The Klu Klux Klan have broken up and came back together a few times throughout history. But after the Brown v. Board of Education case, they came back again in North Carolina this time though. According to www.pbs.org, "Having been dormant for decades, the Klu Klux Klan reemerged in the U.S. after the 1954 Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education decision, gaining momentum in the U.S. as the Civil Rights Movement grew. The Klan would rise once again wasn't surprising, but where the reincarnation place was. North Carolina..." The Klan continued to grow in North Carolina. 

Once the Klan came back together again in North Carolina, they came back stronger, and they desired to gain more people. They specifically targeted low-income white people who did not want to feel like they were being left behind. The Klu Klux Klan caused a lot of change in America. According to www.pbs.org, "Tapping into the fears and resentments of low-income whites who believed that a changing America would leave them behind, Jones took his message across the state, establishing Klaverns and signing up hundreds of members." The Klu Klux Klan had impacted America so much it was either you are for or against the Klan. They were so powerful that for the people that supported the Klan but wasn't necessarily a part of the Klan they made them feel like they were missing something. So, they started to recruit more people.

This film Klansville U.S.A. definitely showed you a more in-depth look of the Klu Klux Klan. It allowed you to see what the KKK was all about, what they're whole mission and plan was, and also the impact that they had in America. As the KKK continued to grow in North Carolina under the leadership of Jones they eventually received the name Klansville. According to www.pbs.org, "Under Jones' leadership, membership grew to some ten thousand members, earning the Tarheel State a new nickname: "Klansville, U.S.A." 

Based on the information given, you can see that this film Klansville U.S.A. definitely opened up a lot of people's eyes to things going on around them. Specifically, this film focused on the KKK and it allowed you to get a more detailed understanding of what the KKK was about. It also allowed you to see the impact that the KKK had in America.