St. Catherine of Genoa: patron saint of purgatory & hope
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-Mr. Daryl Davis
The Godfather. A chance event led Mr. Daryl Davis, a black jazz musician, to befriend a Ku Klux Klansman. Fast-forward to today, Mr. Davis is godfather to ex-KKK Grand Imperial Wizard, Mr. Roger Kelly's granddaughter. Mr. Davis' willingness to listen to Klansmans' fears has changed the landscape of American stereotypes. How did Mr. Daryl Davis forgive his KKK enemies?
What is Hate? At age 10, Daryl's Baltimore MD parents explained racism. He was unable to believe people hated him enough to kill him--if they didn't even know him, Curious to know more, he read every book he could find on hate. As he explored Black Supremacy and White Supremacy, Nazism, anti-Semitism and other genocidal campaigns, he remained confused. Since books could not satisfy his questions, he wanted live sources. Who better to ask than a hate group member? Here is an excerpt from his Tedx talk, link below.
"Listen, I want you to get a hold of this guy," he handed his secretary, Mary, a phone number. "His name is Mr. Roger Kelly." At the time, Roger Kelly was the KKK Grand Imperial Wizard and national KKK leader.
"Meanwhile, I kept hearing a male voice in my head."
"Do not fool with Mr. Kelly, Daryl," I was told by my first KKK friend, who had gave me the phone number. "He will kill you." Yet I needed to understand.
"Give him a call," Daryl told Mary. "Do not tell him that I'm black." I told her to schedule an interview to discuss the Ku Klux Klan. To our surprise, Mr. Kelly agreed, and a motel room meeting was arranged.
"Mary and I got there early. Right on time, there was a knock on the door. Mary hops up and runs around the corner, opens the door. In walks Mr. Kelly and his bodyguard. The bodyguard had a sidearm on his hip. When they saw me, they froze, expecting a white guy. I stood up, showed empty hands, said I was unarmed and I approached."
"Hi, Mr. Kelly," I said, "I'm Daryl Davis." He shook my hand; the bodyguard shook my hand. I said, "Come on in, have a seat, have a seat." Mr. Kelly sat down while the bodyguard stood to his right, at attention. As we conversed, we agreed on some things, disagreed on others. But he let me know I was not his equal. He was superior, justified by his skin color. Yet, I wasn't there to fight him; I was there to learn. The questions flowed: where does this ideology come from, etc.? If I knew more, maybe I could understand the problem and address it. So, I listened.
Then, a sharp strange noise occurred in the room and we all jumped. I couldn't identify it and popped up out of my seat. There was a table between us, and I was ready to come across that table and take down Mr. Kelly and the bodyguard because I knew that neither Mary nor I made that noise. I kept hearing the male voice in my head, warning me.
"Daryl, do not fool with Roger Kelly, he will kill you." I didn't want to die but knew we did not make that noise. In survival mode, people do 1 of 3 things: freeze, run or fight. In slow motion, I considered running but could not outrun a motel room bullet. I was not armed nor was Mary. Did Mr. Kelly have a weapon up under his dark blue suit and tie? When I came up out of my seat, I was looking right into Mr. Kelly's eyes. I didn't say a word, but my eyes were speaking loud and clear. In fact, my eyes were shouting.
"What did you just do," my eyes were asking. However, Mr. Kelly's fixated eyes were asking me the same question. The bodyguard had his hand on his gun, but his eyes were looking back and forth, confused also.
"What did either one of y'all just do," the bodyguard's eyes asked. Then, Mary realized what happened. She filled the hotel room bucket with ice and soda cans for hospitality. The ice was melting and the heavy cans shifted in the bucket. Suddenly, we all burst out laughing at our ignorance. A noise had destroyed our comfort zones, making us fear one another. The moral: ignorance breeds fear. We fear the things we do not understand. If fear is not kept in check, it breeds hatred of all things that frighten us. This in turn, breeds hate and destruction. We want to destroy things we hate because of fear. And that is how innocent people get killed.
Dismantling the KKK. Today, Mr. Davis owns >200 Klansman robes and hoods from his friends who have renounced KKK membership. Since his journey began, Mr. Davis has joined an all-white country band, attended KKK rallies, and holds a “certificate of friendship” from the KKK Traditionalist American Knights. He is godfather to the granddaughter of former Klan Imperial Wizard Roger Kelly. Mr. Davis has received numerous awards for his consultant work with the KKK and other racial relations. He is an actor with stage and screen credits, appearing in The Wire. Most notably, "Accidental Courtesy " is his documentary which captures his real-life encounters with KKK and neo-Nazi leaders as he seeks to dismantle racism across the US. With a jazz degree from Howard University, Mr. Davis is a vocalist, guitarist and pianist in his eponymous band. Known internationally, he has worked with Chuck Berry, as Elvis Presley’s occasional backup--the Jordanaires, the Blues Band, and many others. More importantly, Mr. Daryl has interviewed hundreds of KKK leaders and members, sharing all learnings in his book, "Klan-Destine Relationships."
Forgive your Enemies. Today too, we see how racism, stereotypes, hate and bigotry have become an international and complex dynamic. In His omniscient brilliance, God created all of us in different shapes, sizes and colors for some good, but unknown reason. Yet, God asks us to love Him and neighbor--no matter who. Jesus walked, ate with and stayed in the homes of all. Like Jesus and the saints, Mr. Davis has chosen this high road too: to forgive, to look the KKK in the eye, to seek to understand fear and love--one neighbor at a time. Thank you Mr. Davis for your courage. May we have the courage to fight for each others' souls when the demons lead us astray.
“The Bethlehem star beckoned 3 wise men out of their distant country
and led them to recognize and adore the King of heaven and earth.
The obedience of this star calls us to imitate its humble service:
to be servants of the grace that invites all men to find Christ.”
Sources:
Kindness Is Contagious: 9/3/25 | LIFE 102.5
Why does a black man attend KKK rallies? | Tedx Talks
Science cannot explain suffering. As Lay Passionist and nurse, she challenges modern health care assumptions; contraception, abortion, euthanasia, herd immunity and more. Behind every health dilemma, God asks us to abide in Him. Author of 7 books & >20 peer-reviewed nursing journal articles; she also writes as "The Catholic Nurse" on Substack, see "Archives." She is a veteran of the Army Nurse Corps. Her primary charism is mercy through which she explores redemptive suffering, spiritual healing and the joy of bringing of souls to God.
