100 years ago today in Spokane: American Legion declares ‘War on Reds’ after clash with Wobblies

Spokane’s branch of the American Legion declared “war on reds,” meaning Wobblies and other radicals, partly in reaction to a violent altercation in Centralia the day before.

Four Legionnaires died in a confrontation with Wobblies after an Armistice Day parade in Centralia. One Wobbly was later lynched by an angry mob.

No trouble was reported in Spokane, but the local Legion passed a resolution asking for active steps to suppress the Industrial Workers of the World (Wobblies) throughout the nation, and particularly in Spokane.

“All their meeting places and offices should be closed up here and the men who pass out their literature should be brought to trial,” said a legion commander. “The trials should be no jokes, either.”

Spokane city commissioner J.H. Tilsley said “deportation is the only final solution of the problem.”

The Spokane Daily Chronicle’s editorial page said that “exponents of anarchy” were attempting to develop “a reign of terror.”

“Whether the actual shooting was done by members of the Industrial Workers of the World or not, the crime is a direct result of the teachings of this red doctrine,” said an editorial. “ … Every teacher of riot, anarchy and overthrow of the republic shall be put where he belongs — in a prison cell or on a foreign shore.”