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Sunday, September 9, 2007

New resource on 1798 Sedition Act

New resource on 1798 Sedition Act

First Amendment Center Online
01.17.07

In 1798 the Alien and Sedition Acts were signed into law by President John Adams in response to fears of an impending war with France.

The acts were fiercely debated in the press, in particular the Sedition Act, which made speaking openly against the government a crime of libel punishable by fine and even prison time. Federalists sought to quell dissent by prosecuting those who violated the Sedition Act to the fullest extent of the law.

See "The Sedition Act of 1798," by First Amendment Center Library Manager Gordon T. Belt, at the link below.


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Sedition Act of 1798

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