International Encyclopedia of Revolution and Protest

Extract

The non-interventionist movement in the United States serves as a foundation for dissent in America where involvement in international conflicts is concerned. In 1917, as the United States grew closer to entering the war in Europe, voices of dissent could be heard inside Washington circles. Wisconsin Senator Robert La Follette proclaimed: “Every nation has its war party. It is not the party of democracy. It is the party of autocracy. It seeks to dominate absolutely. It is commercial, imperialistic, ruthless. It tolerates no opposition.” The first woman in the House of Representatives, Jeannette Rankin of Montana, joined La Follette. As a committed pacifist, she cared little about the damage her beliefs may cause her political career. While some male representatives joined her in voting against the war, a majority of citizens cast her as a woman who could not handle the pressures of national leadership. When the US Congress finally declared war, it was the Socialist Party of America that organized the largest anti-war campaign, calling an emergency convention in St. Louis. The Socialist Party held that entering the war was “a crime against the people of the United States.” The party's most prominent voice was Eugene Debs , who gave several anti-war speeches, the most memorable of which was delivered outside a prison in Canton, Ohio, where three socialists were serving time for opposing ... log in or subscribe to read full text