Books › Klan-Destine Relationships
Klan-Destine Relationships
First published 1997 · 315 pages
A tense, awe-inspiring memoir about the radical, dangerous power of sitting down to talk with your worst enemy.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like pulling up a chair to listen to a master storyteller recount the most dangerous and astonishing chapters of his life. The narrative moves at a steady, deliberate pace, anchored by a conversational prose style that makes the harrowing encounters feel incredibly immediate. There is a persistent undercurrent of tension and dread as the author steps into spaces saturated with hatred, yet the overarching mood is one of awe-inspiring courage and cautious hope. It is a profound exploration of radical empathy and the sheer force of human connection. This is a must-read for anyone drawn to true stories of bridging impossible divides, offering a gritty, unforgettable testament to the power of dialogue in the face of bigotry.
- Mood
- tense
- unsettling
- awe-inspiring
- cautiously hopeful
- Tone
- earnest
- courageous
- conversational
- unflinching
- empathetic
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- radical empathy · roots of hatred · power of dialogue · bridging impossible divides · confronting prejudice
- The writing
- Direct, gritty, and conversational, reading like a gripping oral history delivered by a master storyteller.
- The arc
- Moves from a place of deep unresolved questioning and palpable danger to a profound hard-won sense of shared humanity.
- Who it's for
- Readers who crave astonishing true stories of radical empathy and the courage to confront deep-seated hatred face-to-face.
Content notes
- racism
- hate speech
- racial slurs
- threats of violence
About the book
"After 129 years of nothing but violence and hatred, it's time we get to know one another on a social basis, not under a cover of darkness, " explains Grammy Award winning pianist Daryl Davis of his extraordinary journey into the heart of one of America's most fanatical institutions - the Ku Klux Klan. He had a "question in my head from the age of 10: 'Why do you hate me when you know nothing about me?' That question had never been answered from my youth." Driven by the need to understand those who, without ever having met him, hate him because of the color of his skin, Daryl decides to seek out the roots of racism. His mesmerizing story, told in gritty words and startling photographs, is both harrowing and awe-inspiring. Finding that the Klan is entrenched not only in the Deep South but in his own neighborhood, Davis sets out to meet Roger Kelly, Imperial Wizard of the Invincible Empire Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. After a cathartic first encounter at the end of which Kelly poses for pictures, as long as "we don't have to stand with our arms around each other, " the two slowly form as close a friendship as a Black man and a Klansman can. Through Kelly and others, Davis begins to infiltrate the Klan, gaining real insight into its workings and members' minds. Using music to bridge the seemingly uncrossable gulf between the Klan's hatred and the Black man's rage, Davis travels an uncharted road filled with gripping highs and lows.
Description from Open Library.
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