At one point the qualifications for membership were that one must be 21 years old, possess a good character, not be a Communist and be a Caucasian. By the late 1970s the all-white provision had officially been rescinded, but, because the Order used the blackball to admit new members, it was difficult for minorities to gain membership. In 1979 the FOE tried to get a lawsuit dismissed that alleged it was violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by not allowing African Americans to use their athletic facilities. The article stated that a local Eagle official could only cite Joe Louis as a black member of the FOE
I knew when I first saw it that it was an unfamiliar version, bit I just assumed it was from one of the more modern versions of the Bible with which I’m not familiar.
In retrospect, I should’ve guessed that the version choice was a dog whistle. Fucking racists just can’t pass up an opportunity.
From a cursury reading: the eagles club has never been a “racist” organization. That’s just a byproduct of being upper crest “town and country” liberals in the 1800s.
My understanding is that the Eagles’ version of the ten commandments is the most widely used in American civic life since the 50s when the Eagles (an historically performing arts based fraternity) got it placed in the most seen version of The Greatest Story Ever Told in exchange for helping fund the nationwide ad campaign.
The article and its headline are really grasping. The people trying to raffle you a car to raise money for hospitals are not the KKK nor are they on the level of the KKK or deserving of being called a racist organization. They are pretty much just the Freemasons without any of the heretical teachings. They are probably more right wing, but through classism, not necessarily racism.