An Unofficial 'The Rest Is History' Reading List
655. The Ku Klux Klan: Terror in the South (Part 2)
March 26, 2026
Description
How and why did the terrible violence of the Ku Klux Klan escalate? What was the political context in America for their rising popularity? And, how was this first iteration of the Klan finally...
Books Referenced
Reconstruction
Author: Eric Foner
Context:
The historian Eric Foner writes about Klan violence in his big book on Reconstruction, describing how the Klan was 'a military force serving the interests of the Democratic Party' with political purposes to destroy Republican infrastructure.
The Klansman
Author: Thomas Dixon
Context:
Thomas Dixon wrote this novel in 1915, inspired by his father and uncle's involvement in the Klan. The book became a popular play and was later adapted by D.W. Griffith into the film The Birth of a Nation.