The "second-wave Klan" was hardly just an Oregon phenomenon. Native populism is a pre-modern instinct that is hard-wired and found in all political tribes. The emphasis on majoritarianism and illiberal values can emerge from progressive or conservative politics. Democratic President Woodrow Wilson and his Progressive Party imbued the 1920's "100% Americanism" movement with an elite patina. His resegregation of the American Government, eye-winks to eugenicism, and screening of DW Griffiths "Birth of a Nation" in the White House are hints to this despicable progressive legacy that one sees echoes of today on the left in the DSA. Horseshoe Theory in action.
Steve Law’s book is an interesting read with a wealth of historical detail, although the subtitle—How the Ku Klux Klan Seized Power in 1920s Oregon—seems deliberately provocative and may overstate the Klan’s actual control of state government, perhaps reflecting the demands of book marketing as much as historical precision. As someone deeply interested in Oregon history, I would suggest reading David Peterson del Mar’s Oregon’s Promise: An Interpretive History first. Del Mar provides the broader historical context that makes Law’s focused account of the Oregon Klan more meaningful. Overall, Law’s book is a valuable addition to the literature on Oregon history.
I appreciate his historical details and writing, but I don’t think it’s a secret that Oregon, and the u.s., has a racist past and that we should continue to strive to do better, as we have for the last century. That’s not to say bigotry doesnt still exist, but putting a plaque up to trigger white guilt and sell books, is not going to change said bigots. It also negates the progress we have made and ignores that all students are educated about the KKK, slavery, Jim Crow, MLK, and voting rights.
Comparing a reminder of our racist past to those who “died in the fascist state,” is not a good argument either. We memorialize heros, veterans who have died for this country, and victims such as Jews from the Holocaust. We don’t put up plaques of Hitler to remind us how bad (some) Germans were.
Law also ignores the fact that we have the African American history museum in DC, which is relevant considering racism and KKK was a national issue. The museum serves to provide a history of the atrocities and challenges African Americans have faced, but also their triumph, resilience, and massive accomplishments. Many of the accomplishments we do not learn about.
A more appropriate plaque would be to memorialize those who have died at the hands of the KKK, not a burning cross.
The "second-wave Klan" was hardly just an Oregon phenomenon. Native populism is a pre-modern instinct that is hard-wired and found in all political tribes. The emphasis on majoritarianism and illiberal values can emerge from progressive or conservative politics. Democratic President Woodrow Wilson and his Progressive Party imbued the 1920's "100% Americanism" movement with an elite patina. His resegregation of the American Government, eye-winks to eugenicism, and screening of DW Griffiths "Birth of a Nation" in the White House are hints to this despicable progressive legacy that one sees echoes of today on the left in the DSA. Horseshoe Theory in action.
Steve Law’s book is an interesting read with a wealth of historical detail, although the subtitle—How the Ku Klux Klan Seized Power in 1920s Oregon—seems deliberately provocative and may overstate the Klan’s actual control of state government, perhaps reflecting the demands of book marketing as much as historical precision. As someone deeply interested in Oregon history, I would suggest reading David Peterson del Mar’s Oregon’s Promise: An Interpretive History first. Del Mar provides the broader historical context that makes Law’s focused account of the Oregon Klan more meaningful. Overall, Law’s book is a valuable addition to the literature on Oregon history.
I appreciate his historical details and writing, but I don’t think it’s a secret that Oregon, and the u.s., has a racist past and that we should continue to strive to do better, as we have for the last century. That’s not to say bigotry doesnt still exist, but putting a plaque up to trigger white guilt and sell books, is not going to change said bigots. It also negates the progress we have made and ignores that all students are educated about the KKK, slavery, Jim Crow, MLK, and voting rights.
Comparing a reminder of our racist past to those who “died in the fascist state,” is not a good argument either. We memorialize heros, veterans who have died for this country, and victims such as Jews from the Holocaust. We don’t put up plaques of Hitler to remind us how bad (some) Germans were.
Law also ignores the fact that we have the African American history museum in DC, which is relevant considering racism and KKK was a national issue. The museum serves to provide a history of the atrocities and challenges African Americans have faced, but also their triumph, resilience, and massive accomplishments. Many of the accomplishments we do not learn about.
A more appropriate plaque would be to memorialize those who have died at the hands of the KKK, not a burning cross.
eternal vigilance …
Hmm - I never knew what an author night looks like at Powell’s.