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On August 23rd, 1927, the State of Massachusetts executed immigrant anarchists,
Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, after an international campaign
to stop their execution. This page is a tribute to their memory.
Nicola Sacco was born in Italy and emigrated to the United
States in 1908. With Bartolomeo Vanzetti he was
arrested on charges of murdering a shoe factory paymaster and guard
at South Braintree, Massachusetts. They were tried and convicted
in an atmosphere of antiradical hysteria. The trial ended July 14,
1921, and they were electrocuted August 23, 1927. During the years
of their incarceration, widespread doubt of their guilt reached
worldwide proportions resulting in protest. Many books and articles,
written by those in and out of the legal profession, have left detailed
accounts of one of the most controversial and best known cases in
United States history.
Bartolomeo Vanzetti was arrested with Nicola
Sacco on charges of murdering a shoe factory paymaster
and guard in South Braintree, Massachusetts, and convicted on July
14, 1921, Vanzetti left a most moving articulate statement of the
vindication of Sacco and himself in an atmosphere of hysteria the
two were sentenced to die and were electrocuted on August 23, 1927.
With the encouragement of supporters, Vanzeffi issued letters and
articles from his prison cell and displayed a highly sensitive intelligence
despite the fact that he was largely self-educated. The Sacco-Vanzetti
case inspired controversy reaching worldwide proportions. Belief
in their innocence became widespread as they were seen to be victims
of antianarchist hatred.
Neither has been officially cleared of the charges against them
in the State of Massachusetts although considerable pressure has
periodically mounted to bring this about.
(Irving Horowitz, The Anarchists, 1964, Dell Publishing)
Bibliography
- The Letters of Sacco and Vanzetti (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics) by Nicola Sacco, Marion Denman Frankfurter (Editor), Gardner Jackson. Rpt Edition Paperback, 320 pages. Published by Penguin USA (Paper). Publication date: August 1, 1997. Dimensions (in inches): 7.80 x 5.12 x .91. ISBN: 0141180269. List: $13.95
- Sacco and Vanzetti: the anarchist background by Paul Avrich. Hardcover, 265 pages. Published by Princeton Univ Press. 1991
- More...
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
Links
- The
Blackest Hour
- Musical composition by Stephen J. Grieco honoring Sacco and
Vanzetti.
- Prominent
Anarchists and Left-Libertarians
- The
Case of Sacco and Vanzetti [Atlantic Unbound]
- by Felix Frankfurter, Atlantic Magazine, 1927
- Vanzetti's
Last Statement [Atlantic Unbound]
- The
Never-Ending Wrong, by Katherine Anne Porter [Atlantic
Unbound]
- Another perspective on the Sacco and Vanzetti case, by a famous
author.
- The
Trial of The Century? [Atlantic Unbound]
- A comparison between the O.J. and the Sacco and Vanzetti trials.
- The
Trial of Sacco and Vanzetti
- Overview
of The Sacco-Vanzetti Case from the English Department at the
University of Pennsylvania.
News and Commentary
- Still
Controversial - Sacco & Vanzetti
- Sacco
and Vanzetti finally find their streets of gold
- Boston
to honor Sacco and Vanzetti
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