The Ku Klux Klan in Canada: A Century of Promoting Racism and Hate in the Peaceable Kingdom

by Allan Bartley

The Ku Klux Klan came to Canada thanks to some energetic American promoters who saw it as a vehicle for getting rich by selling memberships to white, mostly Protestant Canadians. In Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, the Klan found fertile ground for its message of racism and discrimination targeting African Canadians, Jews and Catholics. While its organizers fought with each other to capture the funds received from enthusiastic members, the Klan was a venue for expressions of race hatred and a cover for targeted acts of harassment and violence against minorities. Historian Allan Bartley traces the role of the Klan in Canadian political life in the turbulent years of the 1920s and 1930s, after which its membership waned. But in the 1970s, as he relates, small extremist right- wing groups emerged in urban Canada, and sought to revive the Klan as a readily identifiable identity for hatred and racism. The Ku Klux Klan in Canada tells the little-known story of how Canadians adopted the image and ideology of the Klan to express the racism that has played so large a role in Canadian society for the past hundred years ― right up to the present.

Genres: Canada, Nonfiction, History

320 pages, Paperback

Published October 13, 2020

Reviews

[Jake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Allan Bartley's new book, The Ku Klux Klan in Canada, claims to be "the first book to tell the story of the Klan in Canada from its origins to the present", and I believe that statement to be accurate. I have never seen a book that deals exclusively with the KKK presence in Canada - at least not in any comprehensive way.

The Klan's spotty history in Canada can be traced back to the wildly successful release of D.W. Griffith's 1915 silent film, The Birth of a Nation. But if the Klan has such a lengthy Canadian record, then why is Bartley's book (presumably) the first serious historical analysis of the terrorist group? Why didn't anyone give this subject a closer look before 2020? Unfortunately, Bartley doesn't provide any answers to these questions. Still, his book has achieved a great deal in laying the groundwork for future research on this important topic.

Although I think that the book lacks argumentative sophistication, its simplicity does not diminish the impact of its core ideas. As Bartley passionately states in the preface: "Hate has a name. Hate has a face. Hate has an address. It lives in Canada". This thesis of anti-exceptionalism guides Bartley's investigation, and he supports it wonderfully through each succeeding chapter.

Methodologically, this is a piece of straight-forward narrative public history. Bartley tends to privilege chronology over theory, facts over interpretations, and the concrete over the abstract. Personally, this style leaves a lot to be desired. For instance, the final chapter extends the analysis of Canadian White supremacy into the digital age, but fails to examine the intimate relationship between racial ideology and communications technology more closely. It's no coincidence that Bartley's analysis begins with a movie and ends with a computer, and yet the technological connection is never given more than a passing thought in his book. "Racist groups have historically been highly skilled, early adopters of new technologies", he quotes one academic saying. Indeed, the Klan emerged in Canada through the artful manipulation of media, and that vital relationship continued through its entire lifespan. I would like to see another study pick up where Bartley left off here, and offer a more direct, theoretically robust analysis of the marriage between communication technologies and the Canadian Klan (maybe throw some McLuhan, Innis or Grant into the mix?). However, I can appreciate the need to establish a solid narrative, and I respect the sheer amount of legwork Bartley has achieved here.

One of the greatest strengths of narrative-driven public history is its ability to get the reader to think anecdotally, and to reflect on their personal connection to the story. When was the first time that you learned about the Canadian KKK? I remember the moment quite vividly... I was in grade 11, flipping through my Canadian history textbook, when I stumbled on a photo of a 1930s rally in Bath, Ontario (just outside of my hometown of Kingston). There was the ugly truth, presented clear as day - the white hoods, the burning crosses, the Klansmen on horseback. Honestly, it still amazes me that there are people in my localities that have ancestral ties to Klansmen. Disturbing, troubling stuff...

How many Canadians are aware of this side of their history? I suspect the answer is - not nearly enough. Bartley's book is a good entry into this important aspect of our shared past.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is really two separate books in one: the story of the KKK in Canada, which unlike it's American counterpart only really existed in the 1920s and early 1930s and was more a scheme to make money for it's leadership than anything else. And the story of the modern emergence of white supremacists in Canada, which took off in the 1970s. Both are interesting topics, but as Bartley notes, the KKK was effectively moribund in Canada by the start of the Second World War in 1939, and had little relevance in the new era.

That said, the book is a little confusing at times. There are a lot of people mentioned, and they are often listed one after the other so it can be difficult to keep track of at times. It also gets muddled with the organization of things, though that seems more to mirror the reality of the KKK in Canada (which was a confusing mess at the best of times). There are surprisingly few physical incidents brought up, which is probably a good thing overall, so be prepared more to read about how the KKK was effectively a front to make a few people wealthy while riling up racists.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carleton University political scientist and historian Allan Bartley’s The Ku Klux Klan in Canada: A Century of Promoting Racism and Hate in the Peaceable Kingdom is mostly straight reportage, a presentation of years of formidable research into a little-covered topic. It must have been hard at times for Bartley not to editorialize. The hate movement in Canada: what a bunch of klowns.

Read my full review at https://atlanticbooks.ca/chris-benjam...

[Kenneth Barclay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Above all else, this is an important text given the prominence of modern-day hate.

Groups such as the KKK are often seen as an "American" issue, with no place in canada. This is, of course, wishful thinking at best as this book proves with startling detail. Covering the history of the KKK and associate hate groups from 1915 to the late 2010s, it provides a wealth of context to our current social and political climate.

One of the more interesting aspects is how this text documents the patterns of the rise and fall of racist organizations and how they have tried to increase their longevity. For example, by decentralizing their groups on the internet to avoid legal prosecution, should a member commit violent crime. It is crucial that we understand how these groups formed and why if we are to understand where they may be heading. This is a book that aids in this understanding.

An uncomfortable but vital read, this is something that every Canadian and American should read. To be ignorant on these important topics is not an option.

[David Downer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book and an important addition to Canadian history. That said, I struggled at times when Bartley zoomed in to cover the details of the Klan's incursion into Canada. While it's important historically to know who was doing what and where, there were sections where I got lost in the flurry of names who often didn't end up doing anything significant. So and so would come into town, swindle some money and then leave under a cloud. You had the sense that many of early Klan marketers were bumblers who really didn't know what they were doing. In the midst of that description, Bartley would note that thousands of people had shown up to hear a speech or watch a cross-burning. That's what I wanted to hear more about. Why were so many Canadians receptive to the Klan's hateful messaging. Bartley held my attention more when he pulled back from the individuals to look at movements, such as the intersection of the Orange Lodge with the Klan.

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pros:
-Incredibly well researched and sourced
-Full of remarkable details and thorough investigation of figures.

Cons:
-For a book that's (rightfully) biased to paint committed racists in a bad light, it never embellishes or assumes. Simply presents information and lets you draw your own conclusion. The result makes things very dry and hard to take in most of the time.
-There was very little race theory involved, only basic explanations on subjects directly tied to the KKK at the time discussed. As a result there isn't a lot of understanding about why racists appeared, mostly they just show up. This could be from a lack of historical information but consulting someone on it could've given more insight.

[Gregory Klages · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slightly inflated rating... good enough for what it is, a bloodless reiteration of the Klan's development in Canada, with significant reference (understandably) to US developments.

This work smacks of what I see as a growing trend among history writers, the temptation to 'cut and paste' little anecdotes or facts from a series of digital (and sometimes print) sources, without much analysis and sometimes little reason for the inclusion other than to give the appearance of wide-ranging research. While this work does not suffer from this tendency, it does sometimes feel a little as if the work was completed in a rush, in order to check off some kind of box.

[Amanda Borys · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was good, but with some work, could have been better. I found it rather repetitious and, for a book about the KKK in Canada, spent a lot of time discussing events in the U.S. For me, the last part was the most interesting, when talking about the rise of white supremist groups in the 21st Century. Especially in relation to events I remember.

Also, the book suffered from being poorly edited. One specific quote was used twice in the span of about three pages. And another section, talking about a Maloney (rhymes with bologna!), refers to him as Mulroney in one sentence.

[George Hodgson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too bad there wasn’t a 3 1/2 star rating. The book is good as far as it goes. The book is not overly profound, however a good history of the KKK in Canada. It would have been better if it tackled hate in Canada in general then more could have been said about the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st.

[Sophia Wasylinko · Rating 4 out of 5]

A comprehensive look at the history - and ongoing legacy - of one of the most hateful groups that ever existed and its various incarnations in Canada. Given the country's current political and social climates, and those south of the border, this book has become more relevant than ever.

[Dave White · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of facts I lived through but had forgotten.
Canadians have no right to feel superior to other nations with a history like this and I'm Canadian.

[Marshall E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good context