Behind the Mask of Chivalry

Behind the Mask of Chivalry exposes the inner workings of the Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s and explains how it was able to attract millions of American men. Drawing on an unusual and rich cache of internal Klan records to anchor her observations, Nancy MacLean combines a fine-grained portrait of a local Klan world with an analysis of the movement's ideas and politics nationwide. The result is a new, multi-dimensional understanding of the social conditions, cultural currents, and ordinary men that built this archetypal American reactionary movement. Examining the developments of the times from the perspective of white men who liked to portray themselves as victims, the study provides new insight into a critical era of American history and into an enduring refrain in conservative thought. In this anniversary edition, MacLean reflects on the resurgence of right-wing populism, white power activism, and political violence in our own time.