Effect on the Broader anti-war movement
A look at contemporary newspapers and artifacts shows the impact the gagging of Bobby Seale had on the public, especially within African American communities. An article featured in the Baltimore Afro-American praised Seale, proclaiming “Gag, chains, threats fail to silence Seale.”[1] Another article from a prominent African American newspaper, the Chicago Defender, printed the headline “The persecution of Bobby Seale”.[2] The establishment press also came out on the side of Seale, showing near universal support. An op-ed in the Washington Post written by Nicholas von Hoffman compared the chaining and gagging of Seale to the historical treatment of African Americans by the judicial system. He argues that in the past, racism was so entrenched that a gag was not needed, there was simply nothing a Black man could say to prove his innocence, and that the gagging of Seale shows that this has not yet changed.[3] His fellow ‘conspirators’ took to the media in his defense despite Seale’s reluctance to engage with them. For example, SDS organizer Tom Hayden issued a statement saying that “If this court wants peace, if this court wants order… [it] must recognize human and legal rights”.[4] What was perhaps even more impactful than the stories printed about the mistreatment of Seale were the courtroom sketches of Seale, a Black man, bound and gagged to a chair in an American courtroom. One particularly moving sketch appeared in the New York Times the following day.[5] In the sketch, his arms are pinned awkwardly behind the back of the medal chair, and a white cloth gags his mouth. But rather than portray Seale as helpless, the sketch shows that Seale fought back. His head is held high and his eyes open wide. Rather than looking defeated, Seale looks determined, ready to fight and refusing to stay silent. The image was ingrained in the minds of Americans and had a definitive impact on the trial. Historian David Schultz contends that “it was the image of the bound-and-gagged Seale and the old tyrannical white judge that entered the minds of most viewers and readers in the country.”[6] The effect was so great that Seale was dropped from the trial a week later on November 5, 1969. Although Seale still faced up to four years for a slew of contempt of court charges accrued during the trial, and had pending charges in Connecticut involving a murder, his severance from the conspiracy trial shows the overwhelming public support he received after being mistreated.
A Quantitative Analysis
A further analysis of newspaper articles published on Seale's gagging paints a fuller picture of public attitudes towards the event. In this section, a sentiment analysis of newspaper articles published in the week after Seale's gagging is displayed. Sentiment analysis is a method of examining a text for its sentiment, or in other words, examining it in hopes of distinguishing the attitude of the author towards the subject. This is often done through the use of algorithms or other more sophisticated methods and the work is given a 'sentiment score'. For these purposes, a simple, positive, neutral, or negative scale was used. Positive refers to articles which emphasized the injustices against Seale and focused on his plight. Neutral articles did not take a discernible side and gave a 'just the facts' version of the story, reporting Seale's gagging but also mentioning the judge's warnings and Seale's often profane outbursts. Negative articles downplayed the mistreatment of Seale, focusing on his 'obscene' outbursts and Judge Hoffman's warnings.
The Impact of Images
There was also a visual component to the analysis. Some articles featured very moving sketches of Seale bound to his chair, giving a striking visual of the injustice he faced at the hands of Judge Hoffman. The photo at the top of this page was the most widely circulated sketch of Seale and appeared in several of the articles analyzed. It was also likely the most impactful of the images circulated from the trial (this image appeared in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Philidelphia Inquirer, among other major papers), as it gets to the heart of the injustice Seale faced. Another great example of this type of image is the one directly to the left. This image appeared in the Chicago Daily Defender, a smaller African American newspaper. While this image did not receive the attention of the other one, it captures African American sentiment on Seale's trial .
[1] Tony Fuller, “Gag, chains, threats fail to silence Seale”, Baltimore-Afro American, Nov. 8, 1969; ProQuest Historical Newspapers
[2] Author Unknown, Chicago Daily Defender (Big Weekend Edition), Nov 22, 1969; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: Chicago Defender
[3] Nicholas von Hoffman, “The Muted Black Men”, The Washington Post, Times Herald, May 22, 1970;ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Washington Post
[4] “Hayden: Who are they Kidding”, Washoi, p. 39, retrieved from “African American Communities”
[5] J. Anthony Lukas, “Seale Put in Chains at Chicago 8 Trial”, New York Times, Oct 30, 1969; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (the photo is featured at the end of the essay)
[6] Schultz p.65
[2] Author Unknown, Chicago Daily Defender (Big Weekend Edition), Nov 22, 1969; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: Chicago Defender
[3] Nicholas von Hoffman, “The Muted Black Men”, The Washington Post, Times Herald, May 22, 1970;ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The Washington Post
[4] “Hayden: Who are they Kidding”, Washoi, p. 39, retrieved from “African American Communities”
[5] J. Anthony Lukas, “Seale Put in Chains at Chicago 8 Trial”, New York Times, Oct 30, 1969; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times (the photo is featured at the end of the essay)
[6] Schultz p.65