Daryl Davis makes a new friend

A black blues musician who collects the hoods and robes of Klan members he has befriended, Daryl Davis has been the subject of daytime talk shows, a Netflix documentary and a seemingly endless series of features and think pieces.

His name is often invoked in arguments about the proper response to resurgent white supremacy in the Trump era, which generally breaks down into two positions: dialogue vs. confrontation.

Should we defeat them in the streets or in the marketplace of ideas? Should we hear them out or shout them down? Should we hug them or punch them?

Today, white nationalist Richard Spencer tweeted out an image of him and Davis together. If Davis were to convince him to abandon his racist views, it would be a huge win.

Yet, there are plenty of reasons to doubt his chances.

No more KKK in Maryland?

In a time of polarization, the fantasy that racism can defeated by chatting with Klansmen over a few beers is alluring. Not long ago, I was one of those gullible people citing Daryl Davis as proof that there is another way—killing them with kindness and so on—but the events in Charlottesville…