Lit Review

I stumbled upon a journal entry in the Journal of American Studies from the Cambridge University Press. The author, Tom Rice, explores the revival of the Ku Klux Klan through the avenue of cinema. Birth of a Nation opened the flood gates for the KKK to become more main stream. Shortly, after the release of the movie, various movies produced by the KKK were shot, distributed, and shown to the masses. Many of the films did it its best to "counteract the poisonous propaganda circulated by alien enemies who have declared their determination to wipe out the Klan." The 1920's were a huge time for the Klan because the movies reached new audiences and could engage widespread interest to the cause. Knowing what was on the line, movies were made to legitimize their movement.

In the movie The Face at Your Window (1920), the Klan identified themselves as true patriots. That movie alone served as a catalyst for growth. To further increase their numbers, members of Klan vowed to show pro-Klan movies to at least one other man to have their message widespread.

Movies such as The Toll of Justice and The Traitor Within sought to redefine the clan by confronting misrepresentations of the group. For example in The Toll of Justice, the common conception that the Klan are real life villains are challenged. The movie's villain uses the Klan as the scapegoat for murder. The Klan tries to come across as the victims of misrepresentations or stereotypes. Believe it or not these films helped people question their stance on the Klan, and recruitment numbers went up.

People with secret ties to the Klan, when questioned about films and their message, denied any sort of connection to the Klan and downplayed the fill to be on Americanism and not to be mistaken with the Ku Klux Klan. Subliminal themes along with the determination to change their image from being violent racists to "true Americans" really did wonders for Klan's numbers.

The article only touches on movies from 1915-1930s. I find it interesting that the Klan has always found themselves feeling like the victim for misrepresentation, even back when society was more tolerant of those feelings (pre-Civil Rights movement). The Klan has always felt that they have not received a fair shake. I know the Klan doesn't represent every white nationalist, but there is more history with the Klan being depicted in cinema.

In the book Racism and anti-racism in American popular culture, author Catherine Silk talks of a shift from films showing blacks favorably. After World War II, films depicted blacks in a positive light and slowly moved away from the days of controversial, racist depictions of blacks (such as black face). Of course films today can depict some stereotypes, but no way is it as volatile and excessive as it has been in the past.


This shift has left white nationalists hating today's cinema. Just looking at top 10 lists of white nationalists, no recent movies really hit home for them. They feel that they are being censored by the Jewish-run media, again making them misunderstood, making them the victim. No matter the era, the message always seems to be misunderstood, the only difference is that today, it would be difficult to use cinema as a way to win back some support. Movies that are pro-white nationalism can not be mainstream. Cinema is no longer an outlet to rehabilitate image or recruit, but there are plenty of more avenues of doing so then there was in the 1920s.