Analyze the speech Eugene V. Debs gave to the jury at his trial for violating the 1918 Sedition Act. Debs was the leader of the Socialist Party of America, as well as an outspoken critic of the First World War. On June 16, 1918 he made a famous anti-war speech in Canton, Ohio, protesting World War I which was raging in Europe. For this speech he was arrested and convicted in federal court in Cleveland, Ohio under the war-time espionage law. He was his own attorney. His appeal to the jury and his statement to the court before sentencing are regarded as arguably two of the great classic statements ever made in a court of law. He was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison.
- Place the document within its larger historical context using the textbook and lecture notes as your guide. What themes and issues from the covered material are represented in the document? Be specific.
- Identify the major points, purposes, and intended audiences of the document.
- Using the document and covered material as your evidence, make at least two historical conclusions about civil liberties in the United States during the First World War.
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