Hundreds Of Thousands Sign Petitions To Label Ku Klux Klan A Terrorist Organisation

Hundreds of thousands of people have signed petitions calling for the Ku Klux Klan to be branded a terrorist organisation, as Black Lives Matter protests take place across the US.

It was only on Sunday, June 7, that Harry H. Rogers, a leader of the white supremacist hate group, drove into a crowd of peaceful George Floyd protesters in Virginia. Henrico County’s Commonwealth Attorney Shannon Taylor also called him a ‘propagandist for Confederate ideology’.

As rallies continue all around the globe, fighting against systemic racial injustice and police brutality, people have been campaigning online for the KKK to be given the label it deserves: a terrorist group.

One such petition, titled ‘Declare the KKK a terrorist organisation’, reached just more than 100,000 signatures before it was closed. It stated: ‘What kind of message is the government spreading by allowing the KKK to function? That it’s okay to be racist? Because it isn’t.’

The petition added: 

For generations, the Ku Klux Klan has been persecuting black people. Throughout American history, they have murdered innocents, lynched thousands, and terrorised many more. And surprisingly, this group still exists.

Think about the pain African Americans endure every single day for the color of their skin. Think about how hard it must be for them to know that they can be murdered by a cop no matter their innocence, but a group that is inherently violent and racist is allowed to exist.

The KKK is protected under the US Constitution’s first amendment, which declares that Congress ‘shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech’. However, it also states a caveat that people must peaceably assemble – a quality the KKK isn’t known for.

Throughout history, there’s clear evidence of the group’s horrific violence and prejudice towards not only black people, but anyone who threatens the ‘purification’ of America. Over the years, the group has carried out lynchings, cross-burnings and, of late, radicalising people on the internet.

In addition to the closed petition on Change.org, a further petition has garnered nearly 85,000 signatures, a second has nearly 100,000 while a third has more than 137,000.

It comes shortly after US President Donald Trump pledged to brand Antifa – a domestic anti-fascist militant group involved in Black Lives Matter protests – a terrorist organisation. Attorney General William Barr echoed the president’s wishes, condemning the movement for ‘exploiting the situation to pursue their own separate, violent and extremist agenda’, as per Newsweek.

Funny, that sounds awfully familiar?

If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact Stop Hate UK by visiting their website www.stophateuk.org/talk