When I saw this, I was immediately curious about the history behind the photo. Hoping it wasn't in Mississippi, I discovered it was nearby. On April 7, 1927, the Ku Klux Klan held a series of "revival" events at a white Presbyterian church in Evergreen, Alabama. The event was advertised in papers all around Alabama leading up to it.
When you think about the magnitude of what James Meridith and Medgar Evers accomplished, you have to remember that this is the world they were born into. It's the world that Kirk Fordice and Ross Barnett were born into as well.
With it being in Alabama and at a Presbyterian Church, I couldn't help but think that this is the product of my Scottish Heritage in America. These people are more than likely my kinsmen. The use of the word "klan" itself comes from the Scottish concept of "clan." Four of the six founders of the Klu Klux Klan were of Scottish heritage. As a Campbell, I'm pretty familiar with the idea that the Scottish could be violent and ruthless. Following the civil war, our kind turned those traits against our neighbors.
The idea of using Jesus to punish or exclude people seems incongruent to me, but it's pretty common. It's common enough that many people have come to associate Christianity with bigotry and refuse to associate with Christianity because of it. That's our fault. We didn't fight hard enough to prevent it, at least I haven't. I haven't yet, anyway, but that story's not over.
Wow.