The Ku Klux Klan in the Heartland Quotes

“White native-born Protestants were the Klan. They believed themselves to be 100 percent Americans as they claimed the righteousness of their religion, the purity of their race, and the sanctity of their patriotism. All others were suspect, even dangerous, as chapter 2 contends. To Hoosier Klan members, the most dangerous enemies were Catholics and immigrants. Less important were African Americans and Jews, though they, too, were certainly not 100 percent Americans. The Klan hierarchy placed pure, white Americans at the top with lesser peoples below—people Klan members believed were sending the nation to hell in a handbasket, as chapter 3 describes.”
― James H. Madison, The Ku Klux Klan in the Heartland

“Responsibility rests not only with a wicked leader but also in the hearts of Klan members in farm communities and cities, social clubs and churches, political offices and businesses. The men and women who pulled on their robes and hoods did so with knowledge and pride. They marched with purpose. They stood reverently as the burning crosses lit their pale faces. They knew that they were 100 percent Americans and others were not. They were not rubes. They were not manipulated. The Klan was not a fluke outburst to be dismissed as an unfortunate glitch in American history.”
― James H. Madison, The Ku Klux Klan in the Heartland

“Klan women and men saw themselves not as bigoted extremists but as good Christians and good patriots joining proudly in a moral crusade.”
― James H. Madison, The Ku Klux Klan in the Heartland