Inside the Klavern: The Secret History of a Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s

Inside the Klavern: The Secret History of a Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s. Ed. by David A. Horowitz. (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1999. xiv, 175 pp. Cloth, $49.95, ISBN 0-8093-2247-1. Paper, $19.95, ISBN 08093-2248-X.)

The Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s does not fit the pattern of earlier or later Klans. Historians have long agreed with this generalization about a Klan that appeared outside the South, held obvious biases against southern and eastern European immigrants, and succeeded in attracting millions of members. But divergence of scholarly opinion has festered in recent years. In 1994 Nancy MacLean's Behind the Mask of Chivalry won an award that belies the widespread scholarly criticism of her work. She emphasizes the racial and economic motivations of the Athens, Georgia, Klan, expands upon its similarity to other Klan branches throughout the...