Pardoning sedition

The words "sedition" and "United States of America" at first glance seem diametrically opposed. The US is famous for its First Amendment, which famously declares

Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press

But this hasn't always been respected. In 1918, amid war hysteria, the United States passed a sedition law. So did many of the States - including Montana. According to the Montana Sedition project, Montana's law was one of the toughest, outlawing

utter[ing], print[ing], writ[ing] or publish[ing] any disloyal, profane, violent, scurrilous, contemptuous, slurring or abusive language about the form of government of the United States, or the constitution of the United States, or the soldiers or sailors of the United States, or the flag of the United States, or the uniform of the army or navy of the United States…or shall utter, print, write or publish any language calculated to incite or inflame resistance to any duly constituted Federal or State authority in connection with the prosecution of the War

Those convicted faced up to twenty years imprisonment, or fines of up to US$20,000 (about US$275,000 today). All told, 79 people were convicted under this law before the war ended. What had these people said? The usual hodgepodge of "disloyalty". Distributing IWW pamphlets or saying that the war was a "rich man's war", refusing to buy liberty bonds or suggesting that they might not be safe, calling wartime food regulations a "big joke", suggesting that soldiers might sleep with people's wives, and of course refusing to support the war or America's involvement in it. One man was sentenced to 10 - 20 years in prison for refusing to kiss the American flag. While most sentences were commuted after the end of the war, 41 people ended up spending 65 years in jail between them, when they should never have been convicted in the first place.

But while there was no justice in 1918, there's some justice now: Montana's Governor, Brian Schweitzer, will posthumously pardon all 79 seditionists:

"I'm going to say what Gov. Sam Stewart should have said," Mr. Schweitzer said, referring to the man who signed the sedition legislation into law in 1918. "I'm sorry, forgive me, and God bless America, because we can criticize our government."

Well, unless the Republicans pass a modern-day version of the sedition law, that is...

[Hat-tip: Ajsnow's Diary]