Sedition Acts Sources
DIRECTIONS
1. On this side, * any words or phrases that indicate the bias (point of view) of
the authors. Which article shows bias? Which article does not?
2. On both sides, highlight any statement that would help prove that the Sedition
Acts were constitutional in YELLOW and highlight any facts that prove that the
Sedition Acts were unconstitutional in another color.
3. Underline background information to use in your introduction.
The Alien and Sedition Acts (http://www.ushistory.org/us/19e.asp)
No protesting the government? No immigrants allowed in? No freedom of the press? Lawmakers jailed? Is
this the story of the Soviet Union during the Cold War? ***
No. It describes the United States in 1798 after the passage of the Alien and Sedition Acts. ***
The strong steps that Adams took in response to the French foreign threat also included severe repression
of domestic protest. A series of laws known collectively as the Alien and Sedition Acts were passed by the
Federalist Congress in 1798 and signed into law by President Adams. INTRO INFO
The most controversial of the new laws permitting strong government control over individual actions was
the Sedition Act. In essence, this Act prohibited public opposition to the government. Fines and
imprisonment could be used against those who "write, print, utter, or publish . . . any false, scandalous and
malicious writing" against the government.
Under the terms of this law over 20 Republican newspaper editors were arrested and some were
imprisoned. The most dramatic victim of the law was Representative Matthew Lyon of Vermont. His letter
that criticized President Adams' "unbounded thirst for ridiculous pomp, foolish adulation, and self-avarice"
caused him to be imprisoned. While Federalists sent Lyon to prison for his opinions, his constituents
reelected him to Congress even from his jail cell.
The Sedition Act clearly violated individual protections under the first amendment of the Constitution;
however, the practice of "judicial review," whereby the Supreme Court considers the constitutionality of
laws was not yet well developed. Furthermore, the justices were all strong Federalists.
Enormous changes had occurred in the explosive decade of the 1790s. Federalists in government now
viewed the persistence of their party as the equivalent of the survival of the republic. This led them to
enact and enforce harsh laws. Madison, who had been the chief architect of a strong central government in
the Constitution, now was wary of national authority. He actually helped the Kentucky legislature to reject
federal law. By placing states’ rights above those of the federal government, Kentucky and Virginia had
established a precedent that would be used to justify the secession of southern states in the Civil War.
Alien and Sedition Acts, (1798) (Britannica School http://school.eb.com/levels/middle/article/5728)
The Sedition Act (July 14) banned the publishing of false or malicious writings against the government and
the [provoking] of opposition to any act of Congress or the president—practices already forbidden in some
cases by state law but not by federal law…
There were 25 prosecutions, resulting in 10 convictions, under the Sedition Act. With the war threat
passing and the Republicans winning control of the federal government in 1800, all the Alien and Sedition
Acts expired or were repealed during the next two years. INTRO INFO
Sedition Definition (History Alive! The United States Through Industrialism by Diane Hart pg 504)
Advocating the overthrow of the federal government by force.
Sedition Acts Excerpt
“If any person shall write, print, utter, or publish…any false, scandalous and malicious writing or writings
against the government of the United States or either house of the Congress of the United States, or the
President of the United States, with the intent to defame [damage the reputation] the said government or
either house of the said Congress or President…shall be punished by a fine not exceeding two thousand
dollars, and by imprisonment not exceeding two years.”
TRANSLATION Under the Sedition Acts, people could be fined or jailed for
1) saying or writing lies about a politician
2) saying or writing information with the intent to cause harm or ruin a politician’s reputation.
Constitution Article 1 Section 8
“To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel
Invasions;”
TRANSLATION Congress can pass laws to put down rebellions against the government.
Constitution Article 1 Section 8 Clause 18 Necessary and Proper Clause
“To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers,
and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any
Department or Officer thereof.”
TRANSLATION Congress can pass laws that will help it carry out the powers given to it by the Constitution.
First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
“Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press.”
TRANSLATION Congress cannot pass any laws that limit freedom of speech or the press.
Why Liberty Suffers During Wartime
(Declan McCullagh http://www.wired.com/politics/law/news/2001/09/47051?currentPage=all)
“…consider this Latin maxim: Inter arma silent leges. It means, "In time of war the laws are silent," and it
encapsulates the supremacy of security over liberty that typically accompanies national emergencies.
Consider this: During all of America's major wars -- the Civil War, World War I and World War II -- the government
restricted Americans' civil liberties in the name of quelling dissent, silencing criticism of political decisions and
preserving national security.”
TRANSLATION During wartime, we give up our liberties for the sake of national safety.