Idea behind this show is that its a show where a black guy goes places either he shouldnt go or you wouldnt expect him to go. And were like oh, where should we go . I was like, i dont know, maybe i should go talk to the ku klux klan. That was their reaction. [ laughter ] that was exactly hmm. Then it got quiet for a long time. But i could tell it was that kind of quiet where they were like that might be good for ratings. But kamau might die. But that might be really good for ratings. [ laughter ] when i pitched the ku klux klan idea i didnt think theyd actually let me do it. You know what i mean . I was just trying to be edgy and get the job. And i thought wed negotiate it down to like the rodeo. [ laughter ] you know what i mean . Let him ride the horse. Horses are weird. I thought wed end up there. But i never thought in a million years that cnn would let me go talk to the kkk. But they did. My name is w. Kamau bell. As a comedian ive made a living finding humor in the parts of ameri
You know what i mean . I was just trying to be edgy and get the job. And i thought wed negotiate it down to like the rodeo. [ laughter ] you know what i mean . Let him ride the horse. Horses are weird. I thought wed end up there. But i never thought in a million years that cnn would let me go talk to the kkk. But they did. My name is w. Kamau bell. As a comedian ive made a living finding humor in the parts of america i dont understand. And now im challenging myself to dig deeper. Im on a mission to reach out and experience all the cultures and beliefs that add color to this crazy country. This is the united shades of america. Learning about america means sometimes reaching across the aisle. And this week im reaching way across the aisle to the ku klux klan. Hopefully, when im done reaching i still have my hand. My first stop in this what the hell am i thinking tour is to meet with an arkansas leader of the kkk. According to kkk rhetoric, theres a new klan in town. Theyre no longer anti
Let him ride the horse. Horses are weird. I thought wed end up there. But i never thought in a million years that cnn would let me go talk to the kkk. But they did. My name is w. Kamau bell. As a comedian ive made a living finding humor in the parts of america i dont understand. And now im challenging myself to dig deeper. Im on a mission to reach out and experience all the cultures and beliefs that add color to this crazy country. This is the united shades of america. Learning about america means sometimes reaching across the aisle. And this week im reaching way across the aisle to the ku klux klan. Hopefully, when im done reaching i still have my hand. My first stop in this what the hell am i thinking tour is to meet with an arkansas leader of the kkk. According to kkk rhetoric, theres a new klan in town. Theyre no longer antiblack. Theyre just prowhite. And nothing says new klan like hanging out with a black dude. For those of you tuning in to racism late, heres a quick refresher. T
have you had black people here before to witness this? no. you ll actually be the first black man that s attended to a cross lighting. okay. the first thing that any man or woman learns when they join a klan group is how to wrap the cross. these robes are part of who we are. the cross lighting is part of who we are. so when you burn a cross you don t no, we don t burn it. it s called a cross lighting. i m sorry. so how often do you do this, you said? you wouldn t want to do them every month. it makes them less special. it s like the idea you can have champagne but you re not going to have it every day. one of the nicest times to do it is during a full moon or in the winter when the stars are you know, twinkle. that sounds kind of like a klan postcard. yeah, it does. if i was going to send out postcards at christmas i would want something like that for if you do that, jim, you don t have to give me credit for the idea. while these guys wrap the cross for bu
obviously, black people and the klan have had issues, to put it lightly. you know, me coming out here to talk to you guys is not something my mother dreamed of. no. so you know, obviously that s a thing. and i respect the fact you re letting me come out here and i also respect the fact you re letting me leave. i can tell you nordic order knights is a direct action group. if you come at us we re going to come back at you. we are not politically correct whatsoever. if you try to hurt one of our members, we will hurt you. mm-hmm. i understand. don t let me sugar-coat anything. no, i understand. we re pro-white, 100%. we only work on our race. mm-hmm. the other mud races, leave us alone. that s all i ve got to tell you is just leave us alone. mud races? there s got to be a funny comeback for that. i ve got nothing. let me try talking to the other imperial wizard here. jim shealy s not covering his face. finally, a klansman with high self-esteem.