The Red Scare and the Sacco-Vanzetti
Trial
After the end of World War I, an intense fear of
communists socialists and anarchists took hold of the United
States. As in the Red Scare of the 1950's, civil liberties were
ignored and innocent people were jailed. A manic fear of
dissidence followed the Bolshevik revolution in Russia, as people
thought a similar revolution was imminent in the United States.
During WWI, anyone who wasn't supportive of the war and 100% patriotic
was suspected of aiding in a revolution.
In January of 1919 shipyard workers in Seattle went
on strike. Although there was no violence or arrests, the
strikers were labeled as "Reds" and charged with trying to overthrow
the government. In February the strike was called off, but for
sixth months all strikes were characterized as "conspiracies," "crimes
against society," and "plots to establish communism." Several
mail bomb plots were uncovered which lead to fear of terrorism by
"anarchists," but the perpetrators were not known and invisible, so the
anger and fear of attack was taken out on workers who chose to strike.
Accounts of strikes were blown out of proportion by
the press, and their leaders were branded as radicals and communists,
even though in most cases these accusations were unfounded.
Quickly any striker was considered unpatriotic and there was a fear
that strikes would lead to a Communist revolution. The American
Legioin was formed in May, many members of which took justice into
their own hands and acted against "Reds," some real, others only
suspected.
It was in this climate of paranoia and patriotism
that two Italian immigrants, Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti where
brought to trail in May. They were accused of the murder the
murder of a paymaster and his guard and the theft of over $15,000
dollars in factory payroll. At first the case seemed of little
significance, as these types of crimes were common at the time, but the
trail quickly became of national and international interest.
Sacco and Vanzetti had no criminal record, but they were well known in
their communities and by the authorities to be militant
anarchists. They were caught in a police trap that was set for
one of their comrades, and when the police questioned them, it was not
about the murders but rather their political activities.
Naturally, Sacco and Vanzetti were very defensive and lied to protect
themselves, this was used to establish a "consciousness of guilt"
according to the police. The prosecution used these lies as
evidence to their guilt in the murders, but many believe that they were
only trying to protect themselves in a time when the nation was rabid
with fear and paranoia.
Their defense attorney turned the case into the
largest political trial of the century. Sacco and Vanzetti
admitted openly their anarchism in court so that they could establish
that the authorities were not simply prosecuting them for murder as
they claimed, but actually helping the federal government to suppress
the Italian anarchist movement. Outside of the courtroom their
lawyer was extremely active. He asked for the support of labor
unions and international organizations, distributed thousands of
pamphlets and organize public meetings.
During the trial, the diametric opposites of
patriotism and radicalism were pitted against each other, and
patriotism won. The jury found Sacco and Vanzetti guilty in July,
1921. This was not the end of their struggle, however, and until
1927 the defense attempted to gain another trail. They used
evidence of perjury by witnesses for the prosecution, and a confession
to the murders by a convicted bank robber. All the evidence was
heard by the same judge who sentenced Vanzetti previously, he even made
a ruling on a motion that accused himself of judicial prejudice, and
all the motions for a new trail were thrown out.
Sacco and Vanzetti's lawyer's strategy of
publicizing the trial was very controversial, and very expensive.
His frivolous spending was seen by anarchist organizations as wasteful
and contrary to their beliefs, especially since the money was raised
from donations of working people. Because of this he was replaced
with a new lawyer who ran the defense for the last three years of the
case. Opposed to the defense of Sacco and Vanzetti were
conservatives and patriots who felt that attempting a re-trail was an
affront to American justice and many considered it an attack upon the
"American way of life."
After every attempt to gain a retrial was turned
down, Sacco and Vanzetti were sentences to death in April of
1927. Their defense had made them into international symbols of
social justice and demonstrations were held throughout the world
protesting the unfairness of the trail. Despite the public outcry
on their behalf, Sacco and Vanzetti were executed on August 23,
1927. From that date on, American democracy appeared to many as
just as flawed and unjust as any other societies, no supporting the
people but rather on the side of the rich and powerful.
While the guilt of Sacco and Vanzetti still remains
in question, they remain powerful symbols and martyrs. The
political legacy of the trial remains to this day because it called
into question fundamental assumptions of American society.
Topher Rhodes
February 17, 2004