In discussion about race in Texas, writers will confront our ugly history
Patricia Bernstein and Chris Tomlinson both have written books that dig into the past and turn up some awful stories. Bernstein’s “Ten Dollars to Hate,” published this year, examines the Ku Klux Klan’s strength in the 1920s — not just in the South but acr
CHRIS TOMLINSON
Q: In LaDainian Tomlinson’s Pro Football Hall of Fame acceptance speech this month, he told the story of Tomlinson Hill — how his great-great-great grandfather was brought to this country in chains and was given his owner’s last name, Tomlinson — a name that connects his descendants (including LaDainian) to your family forever. What was your reaction to hearing him tell that story in such a high-profile moment?
A: LaDainian’s speech caught me off guard because he’s never spoken about our family history so publicly, only in private. Sports celebrities are discouraged from talking about ethnicity and injustice, so I am very proud that he’s decided to take a leadership position in establishing the truth about our nation’s history and seeking reconciliation.
Q: To write “Tomlinson Hill,” you searched through your own family history. And though it all happened in the past, it still feels urgent and important today. What did you learn that relates to issues we’re facing today?
A: I interviewed LaDainian’s aunt, who told me about her grandfather describing life during slavery, reminding me that it wasn’t that long ago. By tracing our family histories, I discovered how slavery and segregation still reverberate today, and if more people understood its profound impact on society, perhaps we could have more empathy, kindness and cooperation to make our nation a better, fairer place.
PATRICIA BERNSTEIN
Q: What made you want to research the KKK and dig up so much of its ugly history?
A: I decided to write a book about the 1920s Ku Klux Klan when a historian asked me if I knew that the KKK once had millions of members and that these members were all over the country, not just in the Deep South. I, frankly, didn’t believe him. I thought he was mistaken. I just couldn’t grasp the idea that the KKK, of all discredited, disreputable organizations, could ever have been a popular mass movement.
But I looked into it and found that, indeed, in the early 1920s, the second incarnation of the Ku Klux Klan, founded in 1915, had between 1 (million) and 3 million members at any one time and was popular across the U.S., not just in the former Confederacy. I thought, if I didn’t know that, even with a degree in American Studies and a lifelong interest in American history, maybe a lot of other people didn’t know it either.
I also found out that people have many misconceptions about the KKK. We always think of it as primarily a racist, whitesupremacist organization. In the 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan was racist, yes, but also virulently anti-Catholic, anti-Semitic and anti-immigrant. And the Klan of that era set itself up also as a champion of traditional morality, promising to come into communities and clean up all the evildoing that law enforcement couldn’t touch. The Klan promised to cleanse towns and cities by punishing and expelling bootleggers, moonshiners, vagrants, gamblers, prostitutes, adulterers, abortionists, etc. Of course, in practice, this often meant that the Klan acted on the basis of mere rumor and gossip, or attacked business competitors or maybe brutalized someone a local Klansman just didn’t happen to like. Many, many white people were viciously attacked as well as blacks. Q : Hate and racial tension have become part of mainstream discourse again. Are there lessons you’ve learned from your research that might help us navigate today?
A: I began the book thinking it was interesting history but finished it realizing that it was important history as well. I was seeing many disturbing similarities between what was going on in our country in the early 1920s and what is going on now:
A The upswing in hate speech and hate crimes.
A Irrational fear and paranoia directed at immigrants because of the actions of a tiny minority. Then, it was Jews and Catholics. Today it is Muslims who are feared.
A The willingness of gullible people to believe “fake news.” The Klan spread outrageous tall tales about ethnic groups — for example, that the Catholics were stockpiling rifles in the basements of their churches, preparing for the day when the pope would come to take over America.
A Rapid changes in social and sexual mores, leading to a backlash from conservatives who were uncomfortable with the new norms. Then it was the emancipation of women, speakeasies, suggestive movies, songs and dances, and new customs in courtship rituals. Today it’s same-sex marriage and the open acknowledgement of transgender folks. We saw something very similar in the 1960s when rock ’n roll, the antiwar movement, the sexual revolution, the civil rights movement, the sudden increase in the use of illegal drugs, the rise of feminism, etc., led to the Moral Majority and the election of Richard Nixon.
A The particular discomfort of “the man in the middle” who feels economically insecure and resents the condescension of those who are more educated or more affluent than he.
My hero Dan Moody (a young district attorney in Texas in the 1920s) fought the Klan in his time with the law and with well-timed and orchestrated publicity. Other opponents of the Klan fought by organizing resistance. These are the tried-and-true techniques, but we must learn, as they did, that persistence is also required. Hate doesn’t go quietly or give up quickly.