Dale Laackman explores themes relevant to our political climate in "For the Kingdom and the Pow

“There is much in For the Kingdom and the Power that resonates with today’s ever-shifting, often manipulated political landscapes,” declares Frank E. Beaver, a professor at the University of Michigan. From over 14 years of meticulous research, Dale Laackman brings to light the story of Bessie Tyler, Edward Young Clarke, and the Southern Publicity Association, the devious public relations team responsible for growing the Ku Klux Klan from 2000 to five million members in the 1920s. Preying on fears and prejudice, they set out to define what made a "real American."

Parallels can certainly be drawn to our current tumultuous political climate, where in this historically ugly presidential election, our nation has been deeply divided by our beliefs in what it means to be a true American and hate-fueled rhetoric has reigned.

Both cases, then and now, prove that there really is no such thing as negative publicity.