Civil Liberties during WWI Homework

Question 1

1. Which act restricted the freedom of speech by authorizing the arrest of anyone who made “false statements” that might impede military success?
   a. The Alien Act
   b. The Espionage Act
   c. The War Powers Act
   d. The CPI Act
   e. The Anti-German Act

Answer 1

b. The Espionage Act

Question 2

2. When Eugene Debs was sentenced under the Espionage Act, what did he tell the jury?
   a. That he was happy to serve as a martyr for his cause like John Brown had before him
   b. That Woodrow Wilson was an inept president who ought to be sentence for sending young men into battle
   c. That as a Socialist he rejected the Constitution of the United States
   d. That Americans in the past who spoke out against colonialism, slavery, and the Mexican War were not indicted or charged with treason
   e. That he was not a Communists spy as he had been charged and he had been wrongly accused by his political opponents

Answer 2

d. That Americans in the past who spoke out against colonialism, slavery, and the Mexican War were not indicted or charged with treason

Question 3

3. Which statement about the Red Scare is false?
   a. It was sparked by a worldwide revolutionary upsurge in 1919.
   b. The government deported hundreds of immigrant radicals.
   c. It propelled J. Edgar Hoover’s career as an anti-communist government agent.
   d. It resulted in substantial gains for workers.
   e. It all but destroyed the IWW and the Socialist Party.

Answer 3

d. It resulted in substantial gains for workers.

Question 4

4. During World War I, federal powers
   a. stayed the same.
   b. were delegated to the states.
   c. expanded greatly.
   d. were limited.
   e. changed little.

Answer 4

c. expanded greatly.

Question 5

5. The Committee on Public Information
   a. was directed by William Jennings Bryan.
   b. protected civil liberties.
   c. was the government’s attempt to shape public opinion.
   d. was affiliated with the Socialist Party.
   e. was limited in its efforts.

Answer 5

c. was the government’s attempt to shape public opinion.

Question 6

6. The Espionage Act (1917) and the Sedition Act (1918)
   a. expanded civil liberties during World War I.
   b. were aimed only at immigrants.
   c. were rarely enforced.
   d. restricted freedom of speech.
   e. were opposed by Woodrow Wilson.

Answer 6

d. restricted freedom of speech.

Question 7

7. The Red Scare
   a. was caused by the fear of a German invasion.
   b. advanced the cause of labor.
   c. strengthened the Industrial Workers of the World.
   d. was an influenza epidemic.
   e. led to the arrest of thousands and the deportation of hundreds.

Answer 7

e. led to the arrest of thousands and the deportation of hundreds.

Question 8

8. In the United States during World War I, the Committee on Public Information (CPI)
   A. established strict rules of censorship for journalists reporting on the war.
   B. became increasingly sensationalist in its information campaign.
   C. criticized the federal government’s reporting of the war.
   D. was led by a panel of American military officers.
   E. became a haven for pacifists and conscientious objectors.

Answer 8

B. became increasingly sensationalist in its information campaign.

Question 9

9. The Sedition Act of 1918
   A. eliminated jury trials for anyone charged under these laws.
   B. were most frequently directed at German Americans.
   C. were created after the Supreme Court invalidated the Espionage Act of 1917.
   D. made illegal any public expression opposing the war.
   E. were rarely if ever enforced by the Wilson administration.

Answer 9

D. made illegal any public expression opposing the war.

Question 10

10. In 1919, the Red Scare in the United States
    A. led to government raids that uncovered large caches of weapons.
    B. saw more than 6,000 people deported from the country.
    C. saw the arrest of several major government figures.
    D. was generally opposed by universities and other academic institutions.
    E. was partly motivated by a series of bombings.

Answer 10

E. was partly motivated by a series of bombings.

Question 11

11. In Schenck v. United States (1919), the U.S. Supreme Court
    A) struck down federal restrictions on free speech that had been imposed during the war.
    B) overturned Charles Schenck’s conviction for urging resistance to the draft.
    C) ruled that Charles Schenck’s actions posed a “clear and present danger” to the nation in the time of war.
    D) upheld the conviction of Charles Schenck for threatening to assassinate the president.

Answer 11

C) ruled that Charles Schenck’s actions posed a “clear and present danger” to the nation in the time of war.