Women of the Klan: Racism and Gender in the 1920s

Rating:
Summary: Who Are These Babes?
Review: Alright, it's about time some righteous European American babes were recognized for their achievement in the cause of fighting race mixing. Rock on!

Rating:
Summary: Disturbing truth
Review: I'm hardly surprised that reviews have been negative as this book breaks into the holy ground of feminism, proving beyond doubt that feminism and racism shared early roots.

I have done a lot of studying on feminism and there is little here that isn't available elsewhere but this work puts much in one place, making it easy to show how the modern femininist organisation NOW and the earlier WKKK are so closely related. More to the point it shows how feminism is a form of hate or superiority cult and has little to do with real equality. For example an extreme radical animal rights type is undisputed as an animal lover - are extreme radical feminists known for a desire for extreme equality? Or simply bias towards women and contempt for men?

Rating:
Summary: Great short history of both Klu Klux Klans!
Review: This is one of the few histories of the Klan that clearly documents the fact that there have been not one, but two Klu Klux Klans. It also examines just how deeply women were involved in the movement, a little-noticed phenomenon in the past.

Obviously the Klan we know today was always a hate group, but it's astounding just how large, wealthy, and powerful the group was, with millions of members (as opposed to today, where they have a few thousand at best), and members in every state of the union.

It's also astounding just how powerful they were, and how involved women were in the organization. One thing the book highlights, that reviewers generally don't mention, is how many people were in the Klan without recognizing the violent or terroristic nature of the organization. The most discomfiting parts she documents are how many people who were involved simply viewed the Klan as a very normal, responsible organization that was a boon to its communities. The Klan worked hard to develop an aura of respectability--quite successfully, at least for a while.

I am rather stunned by several of the other reviews here, which say dumb things about feminism, animal rights, etc. I suggest ignoring those reviews, as they're obviously written by silly people. This is a very good book--highly readable, informative, and insightful. I recommend it highly.