Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos

Palmer Raids: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

The Information Architects maintain a master list of the topics included in the corpus of  Encyclopædia Britannica, and create and manage the relationships between them.
The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts

Also Known As Palmer Red Raids
Date 1919 - 1920
Location United States
Context World War I • First Red Scare

Did You Know?

  • The formation of the ACLU in January 1920 from the National Civil Liberties Bureau was a response to these raids.
  • Violations and abuses were rampant: individuals were held without information of the charges against them, detainees were tortured, and signatures were forged on false confessions.
  • Industrial Workers of the World union members were specifically targeted.

Photos

A. Mitchell Palmer
Front page of The New Majority newspaper from January 10, 1920, with large headline reading Terrorism and a political cartoon showing a tombstone inscribed with free speech, free press, peaceful assemblage.
See All Images →

Related Topics and References

Topics

Key People

A. Mitchell Palmer
A. Mitchell Palmer
American lawyer and politician