The Ku Klux Klan was the fastest growing group in Canada during the 1920s. The American white supremacist organization with origins in the aftermath of the United States’ Civil War found a ready market in this country for its image, ideology and racism. Flaming crosses appeared across the Canadian landscape from Ontario to the Maritimes to the Western Provinces. KKK rallies attracted thousands of participants. Allan Bartley’s presentation traces the arrival of the Klan in Canada in the wake of the First World War, its growth during the 1920s and decline during the Dirty Thirties as the world slid toward a second war. The Klan left in its wake a residue of racism and hatred that remains with us a century later.
Allan Bartley is a former journalist, intelligence analyst and executive in the Government of Canada. He divides his time between Ottawa and the Bruce Peninsula. He is an adjunct professor in the political science department at Carleton University. His books include Heroes in Waiting: The 160th Bruce Battalion in the Great War (Brucedale Press) and most recently the Ku Klux Klan in Canada: A Century of Promoting Racism and Hate in the Peaceable Kingdom (Formac Publishing).
