90:, he strongly encouraged union members to pursue a non-violent course and to try to reach a peaceful arrangement with the other residents of Centralia. He also reached out to the governor to attempt to get him to intervene to prevent a vigilante raid. The landlady for the hall and Britt Smith (no relation), the local IWW secretary, contacted law enforcement and asked for protection, but were told nothing was possible. The Wobblies then printed and widely distributed a flier calling on the people of Centralia to take action. None of these efforts yielded any response. With this being the case an extra-legal raid on the Wobbly hall seemed likely.
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During Smith's trial the following year for his part in the
Centralia Massacre, prosecutors would present this advice as proof that the IWW had planned the massacre. However, considering Elmer Smith's strong belief in non-violence and seeming good character, it is doubtful that armed conflict was his
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With attempts at a peaceful compromise unsuccessful, local IWW leader Britt Smith pressed Elmer Smith for additional advice. Elmer Smith agreed that it would be legal for the
Wobblies to physically defend themselves, but, as he later testified, only in self-defense if attacked first. The IWW members
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After the massacre (in which six people were killed), officials arrested Smith, although he had not participated in the massacre. Later, he was acquitted and released. He died before
Governor
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interpreted this legal advice as justification to arm themselves for what they perceived as an inevitable and dangerous confrontation.
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after the burning of a first IWW union hall in 1938. The IWW re-opened in a second location.
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objective. The true intent of Smith's recommendation will probably never be known.
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The
Centralia Tragedy of 1919: Elmer Smith and the Wobblies
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Elmer Smith was a local lawyer, sympathetic to the IWW. A
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