Infringe On Civil Liberties Essay

It is said that it is necessary to infringe upon civil liberties during wartime. For example, Abraham Lincoln suspended the right of habeas corpus during the Civil War. Similar to that situation, there was a multitude of violations on civil liberties during the first world war. This is due to the fact that before being able to officially enter the first World War, it was necessary for the United States government to rally a lukewarm citizenry into a pro-war spirit. Once achieved, it was mandatory to maintain enthusiasm for the war until peace was reached. The United States government decided that in order to do so, it was necessary to violate the civil liberties of those who were perceived as public enemies: German-Americans, war opponents,
and radical labor unions. A majority of Americans had possessed anti-German sentiments from the beginning of World War I. The country was often looked at as the instigator of the war due to their practices of unrestricted submarine warfare and their invasion of neutral Belgium. Therefore, when the United States joined the war in 1917 on the side of the Allies, Germany became the main antagonist in World War I. German-American citizens soon began to be looked upon with suspicion because of their association with Germany. Another reason that German suspicion was at an all time high during the war was partially due to George Creel and the Committee on Public Information. The Creel organization was tasked with publishing pamphlets, making billboards, and distributing propaganda booklets for the sole purpose of maintaining the American pro-war spirit. One of Creed’s methods of doing so was producing hang-the-Kaiser movies and painting the Germans as Huns. Because of this and other forms of stereotyping, German suspicion by association further developed, causing them to be personally subject to a lot of infringements of civil liberties. Those who found themselves in a similar position s the Germans were those who opposed the war in general.
When these war opponents publicized their opinion on the war, they were oftentimes fined or jailed. This was allowed to happen because of two pieces of legislation, the Espionage and Sedition Acts. The Espionage Act gave the postal officials the power to ban certain newspapers and magazines. It also instituted a fine of $10,000 for anyone who obstructed the draft; draft obstructer would also face twenty years in prison (“Espionage and Sedition Acts”). The Sedition Act extended the powers of the Espionage Act. This violation of the First Amendment was used as a major weapon against those who were expressing their negative opinions about the
war. These pieces of legislation were major violations of the First Amendment, which said that there would be no “abridging of the freedom of speech, or of the press” (U.S. Constitution. amend. I.). Over 2,100 people were prosecuted by the government under the Espionage and Sedition Acts (“Espionage and Sedition Acts”). These people were punished for using the rights of freedom of speech and freedom of press and informing others of these opinions.
One of the many people who were prosecuted under the Espionage and Sedition Acts was Charles Schenck.
He publicized that the draft went against the Thirteenth Amendment, which outlawed involuntary servitude (U.S. Constitution. amend. XIII). Schenck declared that since not all men wanted to fight in the war, it was against the law for them to be forced to do so. In the court case Schenck v. United States, he was detained under the Espionage Act for obstructing the draft. The court decided that the First Amendment had certain limits which could be distorted depending on the circumstances. It was said that during wartime, there is a clear and present danger that allowed the limits of the amendment to become more lenient
(McBride).
In addition to war opponents, radical labor unions were also particularly suppressed during World War I. The labor movement and those who were a part of it were considered a major threat to the government because they were both successful and, in general, against the war. This is because a large percentage of the leaders of the labor movement were socialists who believed that the war was being fought for capitalism. For example, Eugene V. Debs and William D. Haywood, leader of the Industrial Workers of the World, were both prosecuted under the Espionage Act because of their strong opinions.
The International Workers of the World, or the IWW, was one of the most prominent labor unions of its time period. This labor union was a major opponent of the American Federation of Labor partly because of its widely inclusive membership; the IWW openly welcomed migrant workers, blacks, and immigrants. This helped the IWW become the most prominent voice of immigrant workers. The government viewed the IWW as an organization whose purpose was to overthrow their capitalist government. In 1917, 165 leaders of the organization were arrested for reasons varying from treason to use of intimidation in labor disputes (Civil Liberties). World War I was a devastating time for the United States as a nation. During the period in which the country was actively fighting in the war, there were substantial violations of civil liberties. The United States government felt as though it was necessary for measures such as the Espionage and Sedition Acts and the creation of the Committee on Public Information was completely necessary in order to leave the war victorious. Because of this, hardships especially fell on Germans, war opponents, and those who were members of radical labor unions. However, it is also partially because of this situation that something else emerged and strengthened. It is because of violations during wartime, including those of World War I, that there has been such a fierce fight to preserve civil rights in our history.