FREE ESSAY ON KU KLUX KLAN

KU KLUX KLAN

Prejudice comes in many forms. Two such forms of extreme prejudice are the Salem
witch-hunts and the Ku Klux Klan. In the colonial time, from 1700 to 1775, the Salem
witch-hunts took place. The KKK originated after the civil war and is still going on
today. These two groups based their prejudice on religious beliefs. People from many
different cultures founded our nation, which gives us a unique diversity that was and is
not always respected. The Ku Klux Klan states they are based on Christianity and uses
such symbols as the flaming cross. Burning the cross is supposed to represent "opposition
to tyranny and obedience to God." The KKK believes they are superior to all non-whites.
The people responsible for the Salem witch-hunts feared and persecuted those whom didn't
share religious and personal beliefs. A way of testing your beliefs was being forced to
recite the 10 commandments without falter. Ku Klux Klan often expressed their beliefs by
putting burning crosses in non-white homes, setting homes and businesses on fire, and
even hanging non-whites. In the same way, the witch-hunts would force those who were
prosecuted to confess and incriminate, if not, they would be hung, burned, or in one case
smashed to death. Both groups use Christianity against other people that differed from
them. The KKK was an underground organization, and used robes and hoods to disguise
themselves. Rarely did members become publicly known because they were denounced by
majority of society. Public leaders such as, reverends and government officials conducted
the Salem witch-hunts. The trials were often public events that were well attended by the
general population. The Ku Klux Klan was not based on fear of non-whites, rather their
own supremacy. While the witch-hunts feared those with different beliefs including what
we would now consider, "mentally disabled." What good are religious beliefs such as
Christianity if they are twisted, warped, and used as an excuse for violence. The KKK can
no longer get away with their violent acts because of their shrinking numbers and the
prevalence of equal rights today. Hopefully nothing as severe as the witch-hunts could
ecure today, although, the more recent McCarthy trials were similar in that they were
based on fear. We are a nation of cultural diversity and that diversity should be
respected, no one should have the right to force their beliefs on others.