Case library · The Red Scare
The Manifesto And The State
Gitlow v. New York (1925)
Charge: Criminal anarchy — advocating the overthrow of government by force, under state lawCourt: U.S. Supreme CourtState: New YorkDocket: The Red Scare
The facts
A left-wing organiser arranged the printing of about sixteen thousand copies of a manifesto. It called for mass strikes and revolutionary mass action to sweep away parliamentary government and set up rule by the workers. A state law made it a crime to advocate overthrowing organised government by force. Nobody showed that anything at all had actually happened because of the pamphlet. He argued a state cannot punish words that caused no harm.
You have the facts the court had. Guilty or not guilty? Call it in the game with your friends, then see what the court actually decided. Wrong call, you drink.
Citation: Gitlow v. New York, 268 U.S. 652 (1925)
Read more at supreme.justia.com. The source reveals the outcome.