Ku Klux Klan regalia and insignia
Encyclopedia
Ku Klux Klan
Ku Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
is perhaps the most distinctive feature of that organization, and is recognized worldwide. It is sometimes known as the 'Glory Suit' by those who wear it, and many pejoratives by the Klan's numerous opponents.
Development
The origins of the use of the costume are unclear. The contemporary white gown with a cone hat follows the Spanish Roman Catholic "Nazareno" tradition. Such garments have been traditionally used in festivities such as Holy WeekHoly Week
Holy Week in Christianity is the last week of Lent and the week before Easter...
, symbolizing the act of penance. In Spain and its former colonies, the pointed hat is called "Capirote
Capirote
A capirote is a pointy hat of conical form that is used in Spain.Historically, the capirote was a cardboard cone that flagellants in Spain would use...
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The film The Birth of a Nation
The Birth of a Nation
The Birth of a Nation is a 1915 American silent film directed by D. W. Griffith and based on the novel and play The Clansman, both by Thomas Dixon, Jr. Griffith also co-wrote the screenplay , and co-produced the film . It was released on February 8, 1915...
has been suggested as the model that stimulated adoption of elements of certain dress and regalia by the second KKK (founded in 1915). However, the film shows the Klansmen wearing a variety of costumes, and there is far less 'standardization'. For example, rather than the well-known conical hat
Pointed hat
Pointed hats have been a distinctive item of headgear of a wide range of cultures throughout history. Though often suggesting an ancient Indo-European tradition, they were also traditionally worn by women of Lapland, the Japanese, the Mi'kmaq people of Atlantic Canada, and the Huastecs of Veracruz...
s, the film shows a number of Klansmen in what are effectively 'flat' hoods, with a pole sticking up, as if to resemble medieval armor.
Robes of the nineteenth-century KKK were of various colors. In the twentieth century, the second KKK adopted white as the standard color.
Late twentieth-century manifestations of the KKK in small groups has meant a wider variation in robes. Some groups use colored robes for higher ranks.
Some klans use all-white robes regardless of rank. For those that use robes of different colors most use:
- Purple – Imperial Wizard
- Green – Grand Dragon
- Reddish-purple – Great Titan
- Black – Knighthawk (security)
- Red – Kleagle
The Knighthawk's black robe is usually shorter so as to allow easier movement.
Insignia
The M.I.O.A.K. (Mystic Insignia Of A Klansman) is a red, round patch worn over the left breast of a Klansmans robe.It has a large "X" in the middle with a "K" in each corner of the "X" for Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.
Present day
The current organization has splintered, but a number of successor organizations use what is effectively similar costume. The major factions currently include the Imperial Klans of AmericaImperial Klans of America
The Imperial Klans of America, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan is a white supremacist organization styled after the original Ku Klux Klan . In 2008, it was reported that the IKA had the second largest KKK membership....
, The Louisiana White Knights and the Knights of the White Camellia
Popular culture
The Ku Klux Klan costume has appeared in several modern day cultural references, some comical and others slightly more serious. Examples include:- In "Pinkeye", an episode of South ParkSouth ParkSouth Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
Eric CartmanEric CartmanEric Theodore Cartman is a fictional character in the American animated television series South Park. One of four main characters, along with Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, and Kenny McCormick, he is generally referred to within the series by his last name...
appears to be dressed as a Klansman for HalloweenHalloweenHallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
when his principal makes a ghostGhostIn traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
costume with a pointed hood. - The mini-series RootsRoots (TV miniseries)Roots is a 1977 American television miniseries based on Alex Haley's fictional novel Roots: The Saga of an American Family. Roots received 36 Emmy Award nominations, winning nine. It also won a Golden Globe and a Peabody Award. It received unprecedented Nielsen ratings with the finale still...
contains a scene where a Confederate veteran is shown inventing an early KKK robe by accidentally burning two holes in a cloth sack with a cigarCigarA cigar is a tightly-rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco that is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Philippines, and the Eastern...
. - The film Blazing SaddlesBlazing SaddlesBlazing Saddles is a 1974 satirical Western comedy film directed by Mel Brooks. Starring Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder, the film was written by Brooks, Andrew Bergman, Richard Pryor, Norman Steinberg, and Al Uger, and was based on Bergman's story and draft. The movie was nominated for three...
features Cleavon LittleCleavon LittleCleavon Jake Little was an American film and theatre actor.Little was widely known for his lead role as Sheriff Bart in the 1974 Mel Brooks comedy Blazing Saddles. He also was the irreverent Dr...
, the sheriff, and Gene WilderGene WilderGene Wilder is an American stage and screen actor, director, screenwriter, and author.Wilder began his career on stage, making his screen debut in the film Bonnie and Clyde in 1967. His first major role was as Leopold Bloom in the 1968 film The Producers...
, a gunslinger, posing as Klansmen in order to join the gang of villain Hedley Lamar. The joke is that Little is black, and Wilder is Jewish. - The film O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 comedy film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning. Set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely...
contains a scene at a KKK rally. - Playwright Larry ShueLarry ShueLarry Shue was an American playwright and actor, best known for writing two often-performed farces, The Nerd and The Foreigner.-Early life:...
's 1983 comedy The Foreigner revolves around Charlie, a shy Englishman, and his accidental discovery of a plot by local Klansmen to appropriate a young woman's inheritance money to fund their endeavors.