Final answer:
The question addresses methods used to intimidate union organizers and civil rights activists, which included threats, violence, blacklisting, and financial pressure. Historical instances demonstrate a pattern of harassment and suppression of these movements. The Ku Klux Klan and other groups resorted to extreme and often illegal measures to maintain their social and political control.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to the tactics used by those opposed to union organizers and the civil rights of minority groups during various periods of U.S. history. Specifically, one of the methods that groups such as the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) used to intimidate people was threatening, beating, and killing those who disagreed with them. The intolerable actions of violent harassment included murdering freedmen who attempted to vote and using nonviolent but still coercive tactics such as blacklisting individuals to punish or prevent their participation in union organizing or civil rights activities.
During these times, those opposing civil rights progress and unionization employed a range of strategies to suppress these movements, from legal obstacles and societal pressure to outright violence and illegal acts. For example, the White Citizens' Council (WCC) was notorious for financially pressuring individuals to withdraw from the fight for integration through measures like convincing local banks to cut a family's line of credit or persuading employers to fire those who favored integration.
Labor union organizers faced significant challenges from business owners who distrusted their efforts and used tactics such as open shops and yellow-dog contracts to prevent their employees from joining unions. Furthermore, the historical context includes government actions that denied rights to prisoners, as well as the Hoover and Palmer response to perceived threats which involved unconstitutional arrests and illegal surveillance.