Schenck v. United States

1. MAST HS
US HIS – Period 4
Ms. Richardson
Schenck v. United States

2. Civil Rights During Wartime
•World War I – acts of
sabotage on American
property by the Germans
caused fear for national
security during wartime.

3. TERMS TO KNOW
• Sedition - conduct or speech inciting people to
rebel against the authority of a state
• Espionage - the practice of spying or of using
spies to obtain political and military
information.
• Sabotage - a deliberate action aimed at
weakening.

4. Congress Reacted
• Espionage Act –
1917
-Made it illegal to
interfere with
military operations,
including the draft.
- $10,000 fine/20
years
• Sedition Act –
1918
-Made it illegal to
criticize the
government (anti-
war & unpatriotic
sentiments).

5. Selective Service Act (1917)
• Men 21 to 30 years old must
register for draft.
•24 million men registered for
the draft by the end of 1918.
-Over 2 million drafted
and served in WWI.

6. Eugene Debs – President of the Socialist
Party
Sentenced to 10
years in prison
for calling these
laws
unconstitutional

7. The Case of Charles Schenck
• Charles Schenck, General Secretary
of the Socialist Party, opposed the
war.
– Mailed out 15,000 leaflets urging
opposition to the draft.
• Was arrested and convicted for
violations of the Espionage Act.

8. Constitutional Issue
ISSUE
Did the Espionage
Act violate the 1st
Amendment
protection of
freedom of
speech?
DECISION
• Court ruled Espionage
Act was constitutional
• Free speech was not
an absolute right
• Civil liberties may be
limited during
wartime.

9. DECISION
•Mr. Schenck’s speech
posed a “clear and
present danger” to the
country and the nation’s
war effort.

10. Importance
• Court established the belief that a person’s
rights are not absolute (for all times and in
all places).
• The right to free speech does not allow a
person to shout “fire” in a crowded theater.
• The Court’s “clear and present danger” ruling
allows the restrictions of individual rights in
the interest of national security.