That term was coined by social psychologists,
John Darley and Bibb Latane, who were teaching in NYC in the 1960's
when the now infamous Kitty Genovese murder occurred there.
By 1925, the Klan was a political force in the state, as leaders such as J. Thomas Heflin,
David Bibb Graves,
and Hugo Black tried to build political power against the Black Belt wealthy planters, who had long dominated the state.