What do you know today that you didn't know yesterday?

[Angrboda]

I learned about the day the Klan came to Worcester, MA, 100 years ago.

https://www.telegram.com/story/news/hist...635115007/

The article tells the story of the klan rally and ends with the rebranding of hate by groups like NSC-131 making noise today.

Rules about race

Alex Briesacher, a sociology professor at Worcester State University and Erika Briesacher's spouse, said that in the early 20th century, the American “white” racial category was much narrower. In order to be considered white and be accepted among white Americans, a person had to have Northwestern European roots, which were referred to as “Nordic,” and belong to a Protestant church, according to Erika Briesacher.

“The notion of whiteness around that time is constantly shifting,” Alex Briesacher said. “Part of the reason it's shifting is the influx of immigration that's taking place, so it's not just drawn around racial lines, but also ethnic and religious lines.”

The 1920s-era Klan became active in New England, particularly in Maine, according to McClymer, and focused on concentrating political and economic power in the region’s so-called “Nordic” population.

“There's a perception, which still exists today, that 'these unskilled people are coming in and taking our jobs and making it harder for us,’” Alex Briesacher said. “This is about building up a group identity in opposition to these immigrant groups that are viewed as undesirable or threatening to what was considered the white population.”

Not exactly remarkable, but it's interesting how the anti-identity Americans are all about manufactured identities that they feel they must protect.