Sponsored by publicly prominent men and purporting to “courageously oppose the rapidly rising tide of ‘racial’ and ‘alien’ political, social and industrial conquest, activities and influence in America,” a new Ku Klux Klan type of organization is being formed with its headquarters in Atlanta, the headquarters of the now moribund Klan.
The movement is surrounded with secrecy as to general membership as well as definite purpose and methods to be employed. It proposes to be nation-wide in scope, answering “an immediate and imperative need,” and is directed against the alien and colored elements of the country’s population. To what is designated as a “select number of preferred citizens of proper prestige” an explanatory circular and confidential questionnaire containing 13 questions and titled “Caucasian Crusade” is being distributed.
PROMINENT MEN BACKERS
The circular bears the signatures of William Schley Howard, Atlanta lawyer and former Congressman as well as special assistant to the county solicitor in the current prosecution of Atlanta graft cases; Robert Ramspeck, United States Congressman from the fifth Georgia district; Sam W. Small, editorial writer for the “Atlanta Constitution”; William Joseph Simmons, former head of the Ku Klux Klan; Dr. Frank Eskbridge, local physician; James I. Lowry, sheriff of Fulton county and Ed. F. Bond, undertaker.
Claiming to be “strictly non-sectarian and non-partisan,” the Caucasian Crusade movement, according to the circular, proposes to “fervently foster a universally co-ordinated use of the ballot by white citizens for the protection of our social order, for the security of our political heritage, for the preservation of governmental integrity” and to purge the government and industry of all “alien” and “racial” influences.
QUESTION 12 INTERESTING
Of particular interest to those who will watch the attitude of the Caucasian Crusade movement on religious matters is question 12 in the circular: “Would you like to be affiliated with a great, and the only, patriotic fraternity of your kind and creed, blood and breed; one NOT dabbling in partisan religious prejudices or industrial disputations?” Though the latter part of the question disavows religious prejudices, the first part refers to the Caucasian Crusade movement as a fraternity of “your creed.” No clarifying statement is made as to what creed is meant.
In none of the questions, however, is any request made for the applicant’s religious affiliations. While none of the sponsors are Jews it is not yet known whether any Jews have been invited to reply to the questionnaire.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
