When the United States declared war on the German Empire and thus entered the First World War, it imposed compulsory military service. In the big US cities, many young people resigned themselves to going to war. In Oklahoma, in the poor counties of the South, many decided to rebel to go to a war that only served the great capitalists promoted by the Socialist Party of America.
A small tribute to those who resisted.
The Green Corn Rebellion was organized by the Working Class Union (WCU), which formed the militant wing of the labor movement in Oklahoma and Arkansas. The WCU constitution stated that all members of the working class over 18, "regardless of race, sex, color, and occupation" could join, and that "any necessary means" would be used to improve the conditions of the the people who worked. His first demand was the "total abolition of crime, disease, and death brought about by interest rates, and profit as well as the iniquities that have been and are being imposed on the working class of the world."
Several bloody battles were locked in some redoubts, but within seven days, the authorities had crushed the rebellion. Of the 450 men arrested for their participation in it, 184 were accused and 150 were convicted. Many socialists who had not taken part in the rebellion were seized in the wave of arrests.
Once the rebellion was crushed, the reaction was brutal. The leaders were sentenced to severe penalties in Leavenworth. Some of the leaders were not released until they received a presidential pardon in 1921.
The attacks on civil liberties in Oklahoma coincided with a national assault on freedom of expression and the labor movement. Ultimately, this attack destroyed the Socialist Party of America in Oklahoma and the Industrial Workers of the World throughout the country.
