The toiler. [volume] (Cleveland, Ohio) 1919-1922, 1921-07-23


Back to normal!" means back to a
public sentiment which will tolerate
almost anything but the "roughneck"; 1;
which has compelled even Big Busi-
ness and Tammany Hall to become
respectable" In its newer methods
the Legion is discarding the khaki
shirt for the white collar, and is
shaving once day instead of once a
week. More specifically, it is seeking
to mold public policies and obtain
laws, where a year ag6 it would have
resorted to direct action. But its pur-
poses remain the same.
Take recent instance in West Vir-
ginia. Kate O'Hare was booked to
make speech in Weston on April rs.
A year ago the Legion would have
demanded that the city officials pre-
vent the speech, regardless of law,
and if met with refusal, would have
broken up the meeting. What they did
in this year of grace was to demand
that the city officials pass an ordin-
ance under which the meeting would
be forbidden! And the city council,
equally attuned to the niceties in the
suppression of freedom upon which
normalcy depends, met in the morning
of the day for which the speech was
announced, and according to an at
tested copy of the minutes in the
hands of the American Civil Liberties
Union, voted shat any public appear
ance or speech on the part of the said
Kate O'Hare may lead to and result
in riot and disorderly conduct to the
danger and damage of the public"
and therefore that she "be prohibited
(original spelling) by the Mayor and
Chief of Police of this City from
speaking on the streets or alleys Of
this City or other place from which
she may be heard from such streets
alleys or other public place." Violation
Of this order was made punishable by
fine Of not less than thirty days.
Observe that the order applied to
private as we'll as public property and
that it was directed against single
individual; it was, Of course, as illegal
as it was ridiculous. ...
Now note the attitude Of the ma
tional office of the Legion toward this
amazing incident. The national office
of course, has never been able openly
to countenance violence; it has mildly
deprecated it or taken refuge behind
| the excuse that it was individual" OF
unofficial. But here, apparently, j,
felt that the proceeding was suf-
ficiently covered by the forms of law
and the Weston Democrat Of May Il
printed letter to the local Legior
commander from Alvin M. Owsley
assistant national director, in which
the latter said: j
! It is highly gratifying and indeed
pleasing to those of US at Nationa
Headquarters to read the account o
! the splendid conduct Of your Legion
Post during the recent unwelcom
visit of Kate O'Hare into your com
munity.
! One of the righteous principles o
| the preamble of our constitution i
"to maintain law and order" Let u
be sure that the Legion has dedicat
ed itself to those high and exalte
ideals expressed in the preamble. Th
Legion must lead the way-be stron
| and unafraid to perform our duty un
der any and all circumstances.
All over the United States durin
the past year American Legion post
( have been agitating for laws to re
strict the spread Of ideas or teacf
ings other than their own brand c
400 per cent Americanism." TIL
"anti-sedition and criminal syndica
ism" laws that so many States hay
enacted have been initiated or sponsor
ed by the Legion.
\ Of course the modern tendency
act through legislation has led the o.
| ganization into greater meddling
politics than ever. "The American L,
gion shall be absolutely non-politic'
J and shall not be used for the dissem
nation of partisan principles or ft
the promotion of the candidacy Of an
person seeking public office or prefe,
, ment", reads the constitution. TIL
clause has been callously thrown
: the wolves in the development Of
national program. The Legion's NJ
tional conventions have declared, fl
: instance, for rigid restriction Of in
r migration; for the total exclusion
Japanese; for universal compulsol
II