When hate trumps economic self-interest

A newly released study shows how the Ku Klux Klan helped turn the South Red. For years the Ku Klux Klan, the Democratic Party and belief in white supremacy formed a powerful triumvirate in the southern states. And then northern Democrats passed legislation requiring complete civil and voting rights for African Americans, shattering the partnership that had once wielded such power. No longer would the Democratic Party be the party of white supremacy.

The Klan, re-energized during the 1960s, began working to elect Republican candidates like Goldwater, or third party candidates, like George Wallace.

According to RawStory:

“The Klan played an active role in encouraging white southerners to prioritize white supremacy over party loyalty,” wrote the study’s authors.

KKK leaders urged southerners to “form a voting bloc to defeat any n*gger-loving politician that runs for office,” and the group evaluated and supported candidates based on their “authentic whiteness” rather than party ties.

Using their rallies to spread the word, the KKK made its influence felt most strongly in those "less-prosperous counties where whites were more vulnerable to economic competition." The study found that those counties with an active Klan chapter were much more likely to support Goldwater and Wallace.

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