Ku Klux Klan

noun

ˈkü-ˈkləks-ˈklan 

 also  ˈkyü-,

 or  ˈklü-

1

: a violent secret fraternal society founded in 1915 in Georgia to maintain white Protestant cultural and political power

also : any one of more than 20 hate (see hate entry 1 sense 1c) groups that associate themselves with the Ku Klux Klan

2

: a violent post-Civil War secret society founded in Tennessee in 1866 to upend the Black political and social power that was being established during Reconstruction

Note: This Ku Klux Klan had largely dissolved by the end of the 1870s.

Examples of Ku Klux Klan in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Past celebrations have included talks about the famed sojourns of the 25th-infantry bicycle corps, the history of Ku Klux Klan’s visit to a local African Methodist Episcopal Church in Missoula, and the legacies of notable Black Montanans—women, men, and children. —Tobin Miller Shearer, TIME, 19 June 2024

The jury failed to reach a verdict in the case — the first test of a new state law meant to ban Ku Klux Klan cross burnings — though it is expected to return to court this summer for additional proceedings. —Teo Armus, Washington Post, 19 June 2024

Advertisement Under pressure from the Ku Klux Klan, the city of Manhattan Beach used its eminent domain authority in 1924 to drive out a seaside resort for Black guests owned by Willa and Charles Bruce, promising to put a park in its place. —Tyrone Beason, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2024

Many called it a sign of weakness — futile against entrenched segregation, the brutalities of the Ku Klux Klan and the legal and psychological weapons of Jim Crow. —Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 10 June 2024

Read More: The Problem With Comparing Today's Activists to Martin Luther King Jr. Tuscaloosa, the fourth largest city in the state, was the national headquarters of the Ku Klux Klan and home to its Imperial Wizard, Robert Shelton. —John M. Giggie / Made By History, TIME, 7 June 2024

Kidwell’s estranged daughter, Crystal Foster, said Kidwell was a member of the Ku Klux Klan, The Star reported in 2018. —Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 30 May 2024

In 1871, Congress passed the Ku Klux Klan Act in reaction to the extensive racially motivated crimes carried out by the Ku Klux Klan across the United States. —Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 5 Mar. 2024

Sydney Batch, a Democratic lawmaker in the North Carolina Senate since 2021, stated that legislation prohibiting wearing masks in public in North Carolina dates back to the 1950s, when it was enacted to address the Ku Klux Klan's practice of wearing hoods. —Abc News, ABC News, 21 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1867, in the meaning defined at sense 2