28 févr. 1930 - KKK March in Oakville: Assault of Ira Johnson and Isabel Jones

Description:

"On February 28, 1930, seventy-five men in white hoods staged a march through Oakville, Ontario, and planted and burned a cross in the centre of town. Then, they forcibly separated an interracial couple, Ira Johnson and Isabel Jones, and brought Jones to the home of her white relatives. They then kidnapped the terrified Ira Johnson, also finding and kidnapping his elderly aunt and uncle, then returned them to Johnson's house where they were forced to stand in the front yard as the Klan burned a large cross to the ground. This was met with state and citizen acquiescence, and it was reported that a police officer shook the perpetrators' hands, and made no arrest or complaint. Subsequently, the Oakville mayor was quoted in the Globe as stating that the Klan had acted 'quite properly' (Backhouse 1999: 193)."