butchdot:Happy birthday, Leon Czolgosz! (May 5, 1873)Born into a working class Polish-American famil
butchdot:Happy birthday, Leon Czolgosz! (May 5, 1873)Born into a working class Polish-American family and hailing from Detroit, Leon Czolgosz began working at a young age, taking factory jobs in the heartland of American industry. Exposed to labor radicalism through strikes at the factories where he worked, Czolgosz began exploring socialism and eventually turned to anarchism, although his shy and awkward nature made it difficult to form connections with other radicals, who assumed he was a police agent. He did make the acquaintance of prominent anarchist Emme Goldman, and after learning of the assassination of King Umberto I of Italy, Czolgosz came to agree with the anarchist philosophy of “propaganda of the deed,” the use of direct action, including the targeted killing of political and economic leaders, to serve as revolutionary example and inspiration. Czolgosz put this philosophy into action on September 6, 1901, when he killed President William McKinley with a concealed pistol. He was executed for the murder, but remained steadfast and unapologetic. Contemporary reaction to Czolgosz actions among the radical left was mixed, but among the modern left he has attained the status of a veritable folk hero.“I killed the President because he was the enemy of the good people, the good working people. I am not sorry for my crime.” -- source link