The Invisible Empire was experiencing a revival in the Commonwealth of Virginia in 2011. Three chapters of the Ku Klux Klan had reemerged in the state, holding rallies, lighting crosses, and seeking new members. Anger over gay rights, racial changes in the population, and a black president were frequent refrains at these rallies. Yet Klan members said they were not about hate, but about taking pride in their own race. 'The blacks have the NAACP [The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People], the Mexicans La Raza, and the Jews have the ADL [the Anti-Defamation League],' said Stan Martin of the Rebel Brigade Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. 'We whites have the Ku Klux Klan.'

(EPA)







According to the Anti-Defamation League, "More than 40 different Klan groups exist, many having multiple chapters, or “klaverns,” including a few that boast a presence in a large number of states. There are over a hundred different Klan chapters around the country, with a combined strength of members and associates that may total around 5,000."