Unmasking the Klansman: The Double Life of Asa and Forrest Carter

by Dan T. Carter

Unmasking the Klansman may read like a work of fiction but is actually a biography of Asa Carter, one of the South's most notorious white supremacists (and secret Klansman). During the 1950s, the North Alabama political firebrand became known across the region for his right-wing radio broadcasts and leadership in the white Citizens’ Council movement. Combining racism and thinly-concealed anti-Semitism, he created a secret Klan strike force that engaged in a series of brutal assaults, including an attack on jazz singer Nat King Cole as well as militant civil rights activists. Exploring his life during these years offers new insights into the legal maneuvers as well as the violence used by white Southern segregationists to derail the civil rights movement in the region.

In the early 1960s Carter became a secret adviser to George Wallace and wrote the Alabama governor’s infamous 1963 inauguration speech vowing " segregation now , segregation tomorrow , segregation forever ." When Carter disappeared from Alabama in 1972, few knew that he had assumed a new identity in Abilene, Texas, masquerading as a Cherokee American novelist. Using the name “Forrest” Carter, he published three successful Western novels, including The Rebel Josey Wales, which Clint Eastwood made into a widely acclaimed 1976 movie. His last book, The Education of Little Tree (a fake biography of his supposed Indian childhood) posthumously became a number one best-seller in 1991.

Author Dan T. Carter uncovered “Forrest” Carter’s true identity while researching his biography of Georgia Wallace and in a New York Times’ op-ed he exposed Carter’s deception. Although the difficulties of uncovering the full story of the secretive Carter initially led him to abandon the project, in 2018 he gained access to more than two hundred interviews by the late Anniston newsman, Fred Burger. These recordings and his two decades of exhaustive research finally brought Asa Carter’s story into focus. Unmasking the Klansman is the result.

Genres: History

400 pages, Hardcover

Published April 15, 2023

About the author

Before his retirement in 2007, Dan Carter taught at the University of South Carolina, where he specialized in 20th century U.S. politics and the post-Civil War American South. He graduated from University of South Carolina in 1962 and completed his graduate work in history at the University of Wisconsin and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1967. Prior to accepting his appointment to the University of South Carolina, Carter taught at Emory University from 1970 until 2000.

Reviews

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Asa Carter was born in Anniston, Alabama in 1925. He was a strong believer in segregation and got involved in politics to try to further the agenda. He was also a member of the Ku Klux Klan before branching off to start his own little Klan cult. His members were involved in attacks against Black people, notably Nat King Cole and Judge Aaron, and many assumed it was at his instruction or with his blessing. He was also investigated by the FBI for involvement in fire bombings. When public opinion began to turn against Asa, he absconded to Texas and changed his name to Bedford Forrest Carter, a nod to his racist hero Nathan Bedford Forrest. He also decided to tan himself up and grow a moustache as part of the disguise, while claiming he was Indigenous. I cannot imagine why people believed that, but some apparently did. He decided to become a writer, with Clint Eastwood starring in a movie adaptation of one.

Anniston, Alabama is known for several unfortunate things, such as toxic chemicals and Asa Carter. That is a shame, because when I visited Anniston to check out a couple of museums, the people were so friendly and helpful. It's sad they have such a legacy. When Carter died, someone at his funeral commented about how miserable he looked in death. He was a miserable, sour grape of a person in life, and I can't imagine why he would be different in death. This book definitely packed in the details and disgusting statements and actions made by this man. I will certainly be using some quotes from this book in the Civil War class I just started.

[Mike Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heard Dan Carter, a Bancroft Prize winner, discuss his new book at our local library a couple of months ago. I was intrigued, bought the book and was not disappointed.
Asa Carter was a particularly virulent and obnoxious racist, radio personality and Klansman, who achieved a degree of fame in the 50's and 60's. He also wrote Wallace's famous "Segregation Forever" speech. Strangely enough, I had actually heard of this guy.
Incredibly, after a half-hearted run for governor of Alabama, he dropped from sight and re-emerged in the 70's with a whole new persona: Forrest Carter, a Native American author. He enjoyed considerable success, selling his novel "Gone to Texas" to Clint Eastwood who made it into the movie "The Outlaw Josie Wales." He also authored "The Education of Little Tree", a completely manufactured memoir of growing up as a Cherokee, which found its way on to a good many middle school reading lists and became a favorite of young readers. He apparently never abandoned his bigotry or improved as a person. He simply took care that few people ever saw Asa lurking beneath the Forrest mask.
Carter's book is also necessarily an account of the Civil Rights era in Alabama and Mississippi. It's remarkable how the injustices and atrocities of the time still appall and outrage.

[Burt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Asa/Forrest Carter led an unbelievable life. First, Asa was a segregationist who penned Governor George Wallace's "Segregation Forever" speech. Then, in the 1970s, Carter assumed a second identity as Forrest, who became a best-selling author. But the past eventually caught up with him.

Dan T. Carter's book is compelling reading. Asa/Forrest's life is one of those "only-in-America" stories. While I wasn't always crazy about author Dan T. Carter's unfortunate tendency to insert himself into the book, I really enjoyed this one.

[Texas Standard · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Unmasking the Klansman: The Double Life of Asa and Forrest Carter" reveals the complex and contradictory life of Asa Carter, a white supremacist who later reinvented himself as the novelist Forrest Carter. The book uncovers how Asa's violent past with the Ku Klux Klan starkly contrasts with the persona he crafted as a celebrated author. Through meticulous research, it examines the duality of his identity and the broader implications of his transformation.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is frightening to see how much 2020’s America is like 1950’s and 60’s Alabama. Very relevant to current events. Well researched with extensive footnotes and bibliography.

[Raoul · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting and exhaustive expose of Asa or Forrest Carter's life.

[Evan Faulkenbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it, and so did my book club. A wild story about a nutty, racist con man.