In Summation - The Final Word

Illinois v. August Spies, Albert Parsons, et al. (The Haymarket 8)


Listen Later

Hello again friends and family,

Bucking a recent trend of recent cases, today we head back roughly 140 years to Chicago in the 1880s.  This is another case where a person or group's personal ideology was put on trial instead of the men and their individual actions themselves.  It's a cautionary tale on what our justice system could become if we aren't vigilant in preventing it.  

Chicago during the industrial revolution was a tense time.  The working class was always looking for more from the captains of industry who owned the factories they worked in.  Sometimes, if they felt that the pay or benefits they received was so substandard they couldn't take it anymore, they would go on strike.

This case tells the story of one such strike.  A group of socialist anarchists were asked to come in and give speeches to rally the striking workers.  When they did so, a minor clash ensued between the striking men and the replacement labor the owners had brought in to try to break the strike.  During the skirmish, police opened fire on the strikers, killing several men.  The following day a protest was organized to shed light on the brutality of the Chicago PD.  At the very conclusion of the protest, despite its peaceful nature, the police descended on the men and ordered them to disperse.  At that point, a bomb was thrown at the line of police officers, killing one man.  Chaos and a riot ensued with the police opening fire and many men getting killed.

In response, the police arrested the organizers of the event, despite no evidence they threw the bomb or even advocated for any violence that day.  This is the story of their show trial, and why it's so important to make sure we uphold the rights of people with whom we disagree.

Enjoy!

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

In Summation - The Final WordBy Paul Townsend

  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8
  • 4.8

4.8

31 ratings


More shows like In Summation - The Final Word

View all
This American Life by This American Life

This American Life

91,011 Listeners

The Joe Rogan Experience by Joe Rogan

The Joe Rogan Experience

226,832 Listeners

Congressional Dish by Jennifer Briney

Congressional Dish

1,126 Listeners

Politics Politics Politics by Justin Robert Young

Politics Politics Politics

885 Listeners

The Reason Roundtable by The Reason Roundtable

The Reason Roundtable

1,503 Listeners

The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast by Dr. Jordan B. Peterson

The Jordan B. Peterson Podcast

34,136 Listeners

The Political Orphanage by Andrew Heaton

The Political Orphanage

972 Listeners

The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie by The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie

The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie

726 Listeners

The Dispatch Podcast by The Dispatch

The Dispatch Podcast

3,184 Listeners

The MeidasTouch Podcast by MeidasTouch Network

The MeidasTouch Podcast

45,607 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

15,335 Listeners

Club Random with Bill Maher by Bill Maher

Club Random with Bill Maher

4,244 Listeners

We're Not Wrong by Andrew Heaton, Jen Briney, Justin Robert Young

We're Not Wrong

136 Listeners

Just Asking Questions by Reason

Just Asking Questions

100 Listeners

This is Gavin Newsom by iHeartPodcasts

This is Gavin Newsom

6,622 Listeners