Redneck Shop

Last updated

The Redneck Shop was a white nationalist and neo-Nazi clothing store and meeting hub in Laurens, South Carolina, which sold T-shirts, bumper stickers, and Ku Klux Klan robes, among other things.

Contents

The building also featured a "Klan Museum" in a back room. It was decorated with posters of President Warren G. Harding, whom some allege was a Klan member, though many historians refute this. [1] [2]

Protests

In 1996, a white man from West Columbia, South Carolina, drove his van into the Redneck Shop as a protest against the store's racism. The building's current owner, the Rev. David Kennedy, said that he later told the man that, while he obviously did not agree with store owner John Howard's views, he did not feel that violence was an appropriate response. [3] [4]

Building ownership

The shop was located in a downtown Laurens building that formerly housed the Echo Theater, a formerly segregated movie theater which opened in the 1940s. The building is included in the Laurens Historic District. [5] The building is currently owned by the Rev. David Kennedy, a black civil rights leader and Baptist pastor. The shop acquired a great deal of publicity due to this unusual arrangement. [6]

The building was formerly owned by Michael Burden, who was himself a Grand Dragon in the Ku Klux Klan. However, Burden found himself impoverished after leaving the KKK. Burden then approached Kennedy and apologized for his racist past, agreeing to sell Kennedy the deed to the Redneck Shop with the provision that store owner, John Howard, would be allowed to run the shop until his death. Kennedy accepted the deal, although Howard tried to sell the building in 2006 without Kennedy's permission and eventually led to a lawsuit that Howard lost. [3] [6] Howard and his Redneck Shop were evicted in May 2012, and the building has since remained vacant. [5] [7]

As a meeting place for white supremacists

In addition to selling merchandise, the Redneck Shop had also been used as a meeting place for white supremacists; in 2006, it was the headquarters for the Aryan Nations' World Congress. Also, in 2008, neo-Nazi John Taylor Bowles utilized the building as the headquarters for his 2008 presidential campaign. [3]

It was the basis for an American drama film, Burden , written and directed by Andrew Heckler. The film stars Forest Whitaker as Reverend Kennedy and Garrett Hedlund as 'Mike' Burden and premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ku Klux Klan</span> American white supremacist terrorist hate group

The Ku Klux Klan, commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is the name of several historical and current American white supremacist, far-right terrorist organizations and hate groups. Various historians, including Fergus Bordewich, have characterized the Klan as America's first terrorist movement. Their primary targets, at various times and places, have been African Americans, Jews, and Catholics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1924 United States presidential election</span> 35th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 1924 United States presidential election was the 35th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 4, 1924. In a three-way contest, incumbent Republican President Calvin Coolidge won election to a full term. Coolidge was the second vice president to ascend to the presidency and then win a full term.

The Greensboro massacre was a deadly confrontation which occurred on November 3, 1979, in Greensboro, North Carolina, US, when members of the Ku Klux Klan and the American Nazi Party (ANP) shot and killed five participants in a "Death to the Klan" march which was organized by the Communist Workers Party (CWP).

<i>The Leopards Spots</i> First novel of Thomas Dixons Ku Klux Klan trilogy

The Leopard's Spots: A Romance of the White Man's Burden—1865–1900 is the first novel of Thomas Dixon's Reconstruction trilogy, and was followed by The Clansman: A Historical Romance of the Ku Klux Klan (1905), and The Traitor: A Story of the Fall of the Invisible Empire (1907). In the novel, published in 1902, Dixon offers an account of Reconstruction in which he portrays a Reconstruction leader, Northern carpetbaggers, and emancipated slaves as the villains; Ku Klux Klan members are anti-heroes. While the playbills and program for The Birth of a Nation claimed The Leopard's Spots as a source in addition to The Clansman, recent scholars do not accept this.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stetson Kennedy</span> Author, folklorist, anti–Ku Klux Klan crusader

William Stetson Kennedy was an American author, folklorist and human rights activist. One of the pioneer folklore collectors during the first half of the 20th century, he is remembered for having infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan in the 1940s, exposing its secrets to authorities and the outside world. His actions led to the 1947 revocation by the state of Georgia of the Klan's national corporate charter. Kennedy wrote or co-wrote ten books.

The Imperial Klans of America, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan (IKA) is a white supremacist, white nationalist, neo-Nazi paramilitary organization. Until the late 2000s, it was the second largest Klan group in the United States, and at one point in the early 2000s, it was the largest. In 2008, the IKA was reported to have at least 23 chapters in 17 states, most of which were small.

This is a partial list of notable historical figures in U.S. national politics who were members of the Ku Klux Klan before taking office. Membership of the Klan is secret. Political opponents sometimes allege that a person was a member of the Klan, or was supported at the polls by Klan members.

Louis Ray Beam, Jr. is an American white supremacist, conspiracy theorist and neo-fascist.

This is a list of topics related to racism:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wisconsin Union Theater</span>

The Wisconsin Union Theater is a performing arts center in Madison, Wisconsin, located in the University of Wisconsin–Madison's Memorial Union. Wisconsin Union Theater performances include world stage, concerts, dance, jazz and other special events.

Virgil Lee Griffin was a leader of a Ku Klux Klan chapter in North Carolina who was involved in the November 3, 1979, Greensboro massacre, a violent clash by the KKK and American Nazi Party with labor organizers and activists from the Communist Workers Party at a legal march in the county seat of Guilford County. It resulted in the deaths of five marchers, including a woman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian Verner Macdonald</span> Canadian diplomat and entrepreneur (1925–2022)

Ian Verner Macdonald was a Canadian trade diplomat and entrepreneur, known for his controversial associations with far-right figures and groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ku Klux Klan in Canada</span> Canadian extension of American white supremacist group

The Canadian branch of the Ku Klux Klan was an expansion of the second Ku Klux Klan established in the United States in 1915. It operated as a fraternity, with chapters established in parts of Canada throughout the 1920s and early 1930s. The first registered provincial chapter was registered in Toronto in 1925 by two Americans and a Canadian. The organization was most successful in Saskatchewan, where it briefly influenced political activity and whose membership included a member of Parliament, Walter Davy Cowan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan</span> White supremacist and antisemitic hate group

The Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan is a group styled after the original Ku Klux Klan (KKK). Formed around 2012, it aims to "restore America to a White, Christian nation founded on God's word".

<i>Burden</i> (2018 film) 2018 American drama film

Burden is a 2018 American drama film, inspired by true events. The film was produced by Robbie Brenner and Bill Kenwright, and was written and directed by Andrew Heckler. The film stars Garrett Hedlund, Forest Whitaker, Andrea Riseborough, Tom Wilkinson, Tess Harper, and Usher. The film premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival and won the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award.

White Marylanders are White Americans living in Maryland. As of 2019, they comprise 57.3% of the state's population. 49.8% of the population is non-Hispanic white, making Maryland a majority minority state. The regions of Western Maryland, Southern Maryland and the Eastern Shore all have majority white populations. Many white Marylanders also live in Central Maryland, including Baltimore, as well as in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. Garrett County (97.5%) and Carroll County (91.9%) are the counties with the highest percentage of white Americans. Garrett and Carroll counties also have the highest percentage of non-Hispanic whites at 96.3% and 88.7%, respectively. Prince George's County (27%), Baltimore (30.4%), and Charles County (42.8%) have the lowest percentages of white people. Prince George's County has the lowest percentage of non-Hispanic whites, at 12.5% of the population. White Marylanders are a minority in Baltimore, Cambridge, Charles County, Jessup, Owings Mills, Prince George's County, Randallstown, and White Oak. Non-Hispanic whites are the plurality in Montgomery County, Columbia, Elkridge, Reisterstown, Salisbury, and Severn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy Elonzo Davis</span> American Ku Klux Klan member (1890–1966)

Roy Elonzo Davis was an American preacher, white supremacist, and con artist who co-founded the second iteration of the Ku Klux Klan in 1915. Davis was Second Degree of the KKK under William J. Simmons and later became National Imperial Wizard (leader) of the Original Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. He worked closely with Simmons, and was a co-author of the 1921 KKK constitution, bylaws and rituals. Davis spent decades as a KKK recruiter, at one point being named "Royal Ambassador" and an "Official Spokesperson" of the KKK by Simmons. Davis and Simmons were both expelled from the KKK in 1923 by Hiram Wesley Evans, who had ousted Simmons as leader. Simmons started the Knights of the Flaming Sword branch of the KKK and with Davis's help retained the loyalty of many KKK members. Davis was later reappointed second in command of the national KKK organization by Imperial Wizard Eldon Edwards, a position he held until being elected national leader by 1959.

References

  1. ↑ "A Visit to South Carolina's Redneck Shop and Ku Klux Klan Museum". Archived from the original on July 7, 2011.
  2. ↑ "Was Warren Harding inducted into the KKK while president?". The Straight Dope . Chicago: Chicago Reader. 8 November 2005. Retrieved 4 June 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 "REALITY OF RACE: 'Redneck Shop' a Hotbed of Hate". Archived from the original on July 28, 2011.
  4. ↑ ""Redneck Shop" Causes Racial Rift In S.C." CBS News. March 10, 2008. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012.
  5. 1 2 "The Redneck Shop - Laurens, South Carolina". www.scpictureproject.org. 10 March 2014. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
  6. 1 2 "Shop of Horrors" . Retrieved June 3, 2010.
  7. ↑ Neiwert, David (September 8, 2017). "'Redneck Shop' Owner, South Carolina KKK Figure John Howard Dies At 71". Southern Poverty Law Center. Retrieved September 29, 2019.
  8. ↑ "2018 Sundance Film Festival Awards Announced". Sundance Institute. January 27, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.