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Mont. Governor Pardons 78 in Sedition Case
While some of the comments seem shockingly benign, others were less so. But even those who cussed the president and the flag should not be considered criminals, said Work, whose book, "Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West," inspired law students at the university to write petitions for the pardons and help find family members.
"These people merely expressed their opinions and made derogatory or critical remarks about the U.S., the war, the soldiers or the flag," he said.
  Clemens P. Work, the author of "Darkest Before Dawn: Sedition and Free Speech in the American West," poses for a portrait in Missoula, Mont., Jan. 6, 2006. The projected mug shots of Martin Wehinger, left, and Fred Rodewald, right, are from the Montana Historical Society's Montana State Prison Collection. Both men were convicted of sedition in Montana in 1918. Nearly 80 people convicted in Montana of sedition, including Rodewald and Wehinger, are scheduled to receive the first posthumous pardons in state history on Wednesday May 3, 2006. (AP Photo/Brian McDermott, File) (Brian Mcdermott - AP) Save & Share |
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Under Montana's sedition law, it was illegal to make "any disloyal, profane, violent, scurrilous, contemptuous, slurring or abusive" comment about the Constitution, the federal government, soldiers or sailors, the flag or the uniforms of the Army or Navy.
Laws at the time even made it illegal to speak German. Schweitzer said his grandmother was not allowed to speak the only language she knew while out in public.
Law student Katie Olson, who worked on the project, said shedding light on the case is not enough. "The lessons are meaningless unless we learn from them," she said. "It is never too late to learn the lessons history wants to teach us."
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On the Net:
Sedition Project: http:/