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KKK

Racial Violence Threatened in 1925 Sebring

Many people in Sebring today like to have rose-colored glasses about race relations in the town's history. Inescapably, Sebring was a typical segregated Southern town with plenty of racist ideals. In September of 1925, the finishing touches were being put...

East Altamonte Clings to its Heritage

Against all odds, East Altamonte has persisted for over 130 years. The historically black community is surrounded by valuable real estate and three land-hungry municipalities. “In 20 years, Winwood will not exist,” Alcee Hastings, the community’s most famous son, said...

Longwood Town Marshal Kidnapped by the KKK

The Ku Klux Klan of the 1920s is notorious for lynchings and bigotry. And that dishonor is well-earned, of course. However, the hooded order was involved in more than simply terrorizing blacks, immigrants, Jews, and Catholics. In those days, the...

Southern States Feared Negro Domination

Nothing was more terrifying to wealthy landowners in the post-Confederate South than an empowered black electorate. The suffrage of the previously subjugated class could easily disrupt their monopoly on Southern politics. The 15th Amendment, in theory, guaranteed the right to...

Ocoee On Fire: The 1920 Election Day Massacre

A quiet Florida citrus town became the scene of a gruesome racial cleansing that purged the black population for over 60 years. It must have seemed like a lifetime ago to Julius “July” Perry since he first arrived in Ocoee. More...