"Communists are second to none in our devotion to our people and to our country": Prosecution and Defense Statements, 1949 Trial of American Communist Party Leaders

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Author:

Center for History and New Media/American Social History Project

Subject:

Humanities

Institution Name:

American Social History Project/Center for History and New Media

Collection:

Many Pasts (CHNM/ASHP)

Grade Level:

Secondary, Post-secondary

Abstract:

In 1919, during the post-World War I "Red Scare," the Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment protection of free speech was not applicable in circumstances in which there was a "clear and present danger" that "substantive evils that Congress has a right to prevent" would occur as a result of that speech. In 1940, Congress passed the Smith Act, making illegal the advocacy of overthrowing state or national governments. Although the Act was not used against members of the Communist Party during World War II, 11 Communist Party leaders were convicted under the Act in 1949 following the build up of Cold War tensions. In the following opening statements of that trial, the U.S. prosecuting attorney, John F. X. McGohey and the general secretary of the Communist Party, Eugene Dennis, offered widely divergent descriptions of the Party's goals. The Supreme Court upheld the guilty verdicts in 1951, ruling that government action against the defendants was required under the "clear and present danger" test. The ruling further argued that the Party, which was "in the very least ideologically attuned" with Communist countries, had formed "a highly organized conspiracy," that created the present danger. In subsequent years, Congress passed additional anti-Communist laws, and courts obtained 93 convictions of Party members. After the liberal-leaning Warren Court's 1956 ruling that mere advocacy of revolution was insufficient grounds to convict, the U.S. government ended their prosecution of Communists for Party membership alone.

Languages:

English

Material Type:

Primary Source

Media Format:

Text/HTML

Conditions of Use:

Custom License
Fair Use for educational purposes

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Copyright 1998-2005 American Social History Productions, Inc. All rights reserved.