California Criminal Syndicalism Act

E675184

The California Criminal Syndicalism Act was a controversial early 20th-century state law that criminalized advocacy of violent or revolutionary means for political or industrial change, later scrutinized and effectively discredited in landmark free speech cases.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
California Criminal Syndicalism Act canonical 1

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf anti-syndicalism law ⓘ
criminal law ⓘ
state statute ⓘ
aimedAt Industrial Workers of the World ⓘ
anarchist movements ⓘ
communist movements ⓘ
radical labor organizations ⓘ
appliesTo industrial advocacy ⓘ
political advocacy ⓘ
areaOfLaw constitutional law ⓘ
criminal law ⓘ
labor law ⓘ
constitutionalIssue First Amendment to the United States Constitution ⓘ
freedom of association ⓘ
country United States ⓘ
criticizedFor overbreadth ⓘ
use against political dissenters ⓘ
vagueness ⓘ
violating freedom of speech ⓘ
describedAs controversial early 20th-century state law ⓘ
tool of political repression in California ⓘ
hasEffect chilled radical political and labor speech in California ⓘ
historicalPeriod First Red Scare ⓘ
influenced similar criminal syndicalism laws in other U.S. states ⓘ
influencedBy national anti-radical sentiment ⓘ
jurisdiction State of California ⓘ
legacy cited in discussions of free speech protections for radical advocacy ⓘ
example of overbroad suppression of political speech ⓘ
legalDefinition criminalized advocacy of crime, sabotage, violence, or other unlawful methods of terrorism as a means of accomplishing industrial or political change ⓘ
legalStatus effectively discredited ⓘ
largely unenforceable after mid-20th century ⓘ
legislativeBody California State Legislature ⓘ
mainSubject criminal syndicalism ⓘ
freedom of speech ⓘ
labor radicalism ⓘ
political radicalism ⓘ
motivatedBy anti-anarchism ⓘ
anti-communism ⓘ
fear of radical labor movements ⓘ
prohibited advocacy of violent means for industrial change ⓘ
advocacy of violent means for political change ⓘ
membership in organizations that advocated criminal syndicalism ⓘ
organizing or assisting organizations that advocated criminal syndicalism ⓘ
relatedCase Brandenburg v. Ohio ⓘ
scrutinizedIn Whitney v. California ⓘ
testCase Whitney v. California ⓘ
usedFor prosecution of labor activists ⓘ
prosecution of political radicals ⓘ

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Whitney v. California → statuteInvolved → California Criminal Syndicalism Act ⓘ