The Sedition Acts: Was Eugene Debs Rightly Convicted?

1757 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: legal model of supreme court decision making.

In 1919, the Supreme Court erroneously ruled the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918 were constitutional under Schenck v. United States.1 This was a false premise and those convicted under these acts, including Eugene Debs, were tried under an unconstitutional law. The unconstitutional nature of the law aside, the Supreme Court failed to properly interpret the Sedition Act under which he was convicted.

The Sedition Act of 19182 consisted of several provisions to restrict speech during wartime, including “willfully obstruct[ing] the recruitment or enlistment service of the United States.” Eugene Debs was convicted for violating this provision during his Canton, OH speech in June 19183. In Debs v. United States,4 the courts inferred certain statements made by Debs demonstrated intent to obstruct recruitment efforts. The Court also concluded these inferences posed a “clear and present danger” to the country under a precedent established months before in Schenck v. United States.

The precedent from the related Schenck v. United States trial has essentially been overturned by the Supreme Court in later decisions, and although many aspects of the Sedition Act were later repealed and are now considered unconstitutional, I will focus my arguments on why I believe the Supreme Court wrongly affirmed the judgment against Debs under this act at the time the ruling was given. I will assess statements made by Debs with the Sedition Act and explain why he did not violate the “obstruction of recruitment” provision for which he was convicted. In addition, I will examine three related Supreme Court cases on sedition during WWI: Schenck v. United States, Debs v. United States, and Abrams v. United States5 to demon...

... middle of paper ...

.... Schenck v. United States, 249 U.S. 47 (1919)

2. Espionage Act of June 15, 1917, c. 30, Tit. 1, 3, 40 Stat. 219, as amended by the Act of May 16, 1918, c. 75, 1, 40 Stat. 553 (Comp. St. 1918, 10212c)

3. Debs, Eugene. Canton, OH (June 16, 1918)

4. Debs v. United States, 249 U.S. 211 (1919)

5. Abrams v. United States, 250 U.S. 616 (1919)

6. Masses Publishing Co. v. Patten, 244 F. 535 (S.D.N.Y. 1917)

7. Chafee, Zechariah. "Freedom of Speech in Wartime." Harvard Law Review 32: 932–973. 1919

8. Novick, Sheldon M. Honorable Justice: The Life of Oliver Wendell Holmes. Boston: Little. 1989.

9. Brandenburg v. Ohio, 395 U.S. 444 (1969)

10. Alschuler, Albert W. Law Without Values: The Life, Work, and Legacy of Justice Holmes. Chicago: Chicago. 2000.

11. Pierce v. United States, 160 U.S. 355 (1896)

12. Eugene Debs Internet Archive.

13. World War I Document Archive.

Show More
Related

  • John D. Rockefeller as a Robber Baron

    3611 Words  | 8 Pages

    Guilford, CT: Dushkin/ McGraw-Hill, 1997. Chiatkin, Anton. A. Treason in America. Washington DC: Executive Intelligence. Review, a review of the book, Divine, Breen, Frederickson, and Williams. America Past and Present.

    Read More

  • Lincoln's Suspension Of Habeas Corpus Analysis

    1451 Words  | 3 Pages

    The American Civil War not only proved to be the country’s deadliest war but also precipitated one of the greatest constitutional crises in the history of the United States. President Lincoln is revered by many Americans today as a man of great moral principle who was responsible for both preventing the Union’s dissolution as well as helping to trigger the movement to abolish slavery. In retrospect, modern historians find it difficult to question the legitimacy of Lincoln’s actions as President. A more precise review of President Lincoln’s actions during the Civil War, however, reveals that many, if not the majority, of his actions were far from legitimate on constitutional and legal grounds. Moreover, his true political motives reveal his

    Read More

  • Race in A Different Mirror’ by Ronald Takaki

    1413 Words  | 3 Pages

    In order to enlist more soldiers into the army the Espionage Act of 1917 was enacted into law. The law made it illegal for any individual to interfere in the enlistment process. It law was meet with major protests across majority of the US cities. Throughout the 20th century the law was enforced during all foreign wars, and this led to the draft resistance to Vietnam War. During World War I many opponents who contravened the Espionage Act were imprisoned. The growth of the Anarchist movement was suppressed with the prosecution of two of their members; Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti in 1920 (Zinn 1995, p. 367).

    Read More

  • Supreme Court Case: Tinker V. Des Moines Independent Community School District

    550 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Summary of the Decision." Landmark Cases Of The U.S Supreme Court. Street Law, Inc, n.d. Web. 1 Nov. 2013. .

    Read More

  • Schenck v. US

    735 Words  | 2 Pages

    An appeal was filed because Schenck and his counsel believed that the Espionage Act was unconstitutional due to its violation of the First Amendment. The United States asserted that Schenck violated the act by conspiring “to cause insubordination … in the military and naval forces of the United States.” Schenck also believed that the military draft was a slave-like institution and that it infringed upon the 14th amendment.

    Read More

  • Alger Hiss Spy Case

    2282 Words  | 5 Pages

    During the late nineteen forties, a new anti-Communistic chase was in full holler, this being the one of the most active Cold War fronts at home. Many panic-stricken citizens feared that Communist spies were undermining the government and treacherously misdirecting foreign policy. The attorney general planned a list of ninety supposedly disloyal organizations, none of which was given the right to prove its loyalty to the United States. The Loyalty Review Board investigated more than three million employees that caused a nation wide security conscious. Later, individual states began ferreting out Communist spies in their area. Now, Americans cannot continue to enjoy traditional freedoms in the face of a ruthless international conspiracy known as the Soviet Communism. In 1949, eleven accused Communists were brought before a New York jury for abusing the Smith Act of 1940, which prohibited conspiring to teach the violent overthrow of the government. The eleven Communist leaders were convicted and sentenced to prison.

    Read More

  • American Civil Liberties: Do Americans Have Enough Protections for Civil Liberties, or Not?

    1449 Words  | 3 Pages

    Cole, D., & Dempsey, J. X. (2006). Terrorism and the constitution: sacrificing civil liberties in the name of national security. New York: New Press.

    Read More

  • Civil Liberties of the Early Twentieth Century

    980 Words  | 2 Pages

    The scare of not being united under a time of war was the cause of the Espionage and Sedition acts. These acts immediately caused the unfair conviction of Schenek and put him in prison. Although he was utilizing his freedom of speech, the unfair laws passed through the government by Woodrow Wilson, Congress, and the Supreme Court forbade him his civil liberties.

    Read More

  • The Fit Stop Case Study

    1401 Words  | 3 Pages

    Appelbaum, J.D. (1994). "The Law of the United States."

    Read More

  • The Second Challenge: Imperial Judiciary

    1279 Words  | 3 Pages

    Palmer, Elizabeth A. "The Court and Public Opinion." CQ Weekly 2 Dec. 2000. CQ Weekly. SAGE Publications. Web. 1 Mar. 2000. .

    Read More

  • The Espionage Act and The Sedition Act

    2058 Words  | 5 Pages

    After the war, there would at least one bill presented sanctioning more of the Espionage Act to be enacted during times of p...

    Read More

  • Women In Mexico And The United States And Mexico

    1684 Words  | 4 Pages

    While thousands of American men fought in the war, not all American’s believed that the war was justified. In his address to the nation, President James Polk stated that the United States would fulfill it’s destiny by bringing peace to the less fortunate. In contrast to this, many in America felt that the war was unjust, realizing that the disputed territory never belonged to the United States. Among those opposing President Polk’s declaration of war was Congressman Abraham Lincoln, who refuted the President’s claims by analyzing his speech. Thomas Parker delivered a speech entitled “Sermon on War” in which he criticized the war for the same reasons as Abraham...

    Read More

  • Schenck v. United States (1919)

    427 Words  | 1 Pages

    Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., delivered a judgment that established guidelines for evaluating the limits of free speech. In Schenck’s case, Court had to decide whether the First Amendment protected his words, even though it might have had the power to cause opposition to the draft. The First Amendment states that "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech." The Court concluded that because Schenck's speech was intended to create opposition to the draft, he was not protected by the First Amendment.

    Read More

  • American Spies: The Secret of Washington’s Culper Spy Ring

    3405 Words  | 7 Pages

    Reynolds, Larry. “Patriot and Criminals, Criminal and Patriots.” South Central Review. Vol 9, No. 1.

    Read More

  • Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

    2637 Words  | 6 Pages

    Columbia Law Review, 104, 1-20. doi:10.2307/4099343. Reynolds, S. (2009). The 'Standard'. An interview with Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

    Read More

More about The Sedition Acts: Was Eugene Debs Rightly Convicted?

Open Document