The Ku Klux Klan Used to Impersonate Mr. Rogers

The Ku Klux Klan was not something that most of us would ever identify with Mr. Rogers, the epitome of morally upright entertainment and children's development, and he certainly didn't want to be. However, the Klan continued to pose as Rogers to the point where authorities had to intervene.

The Missouri Knights of the Ku Klux Klan were ordered by the courts to stop creating messages that mimicked the music and speech patterns of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood after Fred Rogers filed a lawsuit in 1990. Someone who resembles Rogers may be heard on the recordings spouting racial insults and even imitating a lynching. A second version focuses on remarks that are derogatory to homosexuals. When a specific number was called—a number that had been issued to students—the recordings would play.