Dismantling the KKK Through Friendship with Daryl Davis—Musician and Activist

You aren’t supposed to become friends with the people who hate you—but that’s exactly what Daryl Davis did. After a chance encounter with a KKK member in a Maryland bar, Daryl struck up a friendship that changed both of their lives. The KKK member renounced the group, and Daryl got access to do the thing he wanted: become the first African-American to write a book on the KKK based on first-person interviews. Through the years, as the men Daryl has met and befriended have left the Klan behind, he’s collected a closet full of their robes, flags, and memorabilia. Davis’ is personally responsible for some 50 men leaving the Klan behind, and indirectly responsible for some 200 more. How? His secret weapon is friendship. He is an incredibly aggressive man with a story you have to hear to believe.