United States v. Brown
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United States v. Brown was a decision of the US Supreme Court that upheld the rights of communists to hold leadership positions in labor unions.
Background
The Landrum-Griffin Act (LMRDA) was a piece of McCarthy-era legislation meant to regulate the internal affairs of labor unions, passed in 1959. Under section 504, members of the Communist Party and convicted felons were barred from holding union office.[1][2]
Archie Brown was elected to the executive board of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, Local 10 (San Francisco) in the late 1950's.[3][2][1] Brown was an open member of the Communist Party and had been the Party's candidate for various government offices in California.[1] In 1961, Brown was arrested and charged with violating section 504 of the LMRDA. He was convicted in 1963, and appealed his decision to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. After the appeals court ruled in his favor, the decision was appealed to the Supreme Court.[2][1]
Ruling
In 1965, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of Brown. In a decision authored by Earl Warren, section 504 of the LMRDA was found to violate the First and Fifth Amendments of the Constitution.[4][5][6][2]
References
- ^ a b c d "Archie Brown Papers: NYU Special Collections Finding Aids". findingaids.library.nyu.edu. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
- ^ a b c d "United States v. Brown". Oyez.
- ^ Howe, Marvine (1990-11-25). "Archie Brown, 79, Union Leader In Landmark Case on Communists". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
- ^ "U.S. Reports: United States v. Brown, 381 U.S. 437 (1965)". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
- ^ "UNITED STATES, Petitioner, v. Archie BROWN". LII / Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
- ^ "United States v. Brown, 381 U.S. 437 (1965)". Justia Law. Retrieved 2024-01-17.