Henry McNeal Turner and Ku Klux Klan

Henry McNeal Turner:

Henry McNeal Turner was an important man in our society and helped to form the African American society. He was a pioneering church organizer and missionary for the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Turner also helped organize Georgia's Republican Party. Because of Turner's efforts and those of the black leaders before him, blacks were put onto the Georgia Legislature when the South was split. Unfortunately the white legislators did not agree with having blacks hold an office. So when the South was divided back into a whole, rather than military sections, the Democrats claimed that the right to vote did not equate to the right to he office. Therefore they kicked the African Americans out of office. The Federal government did not like the whites' attitude towards this and put the black people back on the legislature. Henry McNeal Turner changed the legislature in Georgia forever. He was one of the first black politicians and has been remembered throughout the nation.

Ku Klux Klan:

The Ku Klux Klan was founded in 1866 and originated as a secret society after the war. The society soon became America's first domestic terrorists. Their initial goal was to stop blacks from voting and they attempted to deprive blacks of their rights. The society directed their violence at white, but mainly black, Republican leaders. Anyone who working to guarantee blacks' civil rights was targeted. The Ku Klux Klan was formed by Confederate soldiers but soon many other whites had a part in it. The Klan would burn crosses, stage rallies, parades and marches to prevent immigrants, Catholics, Jews, and blacks from exercising their rights and religions. During the civil rights movement of the 1960s the Ku Klux Klan also rained terror. They burned black schools and churches. The Great Depression in the 1930s finally out a stop to the Ku Klux Klan, but some actions still were carried out by individuals. President Lyndon Johnston's speech was what really ended the society. Their violence stopped and they finally disbanded. Even though the Klan is long gone, no one can forget the terror they caused.