In 1935, the nation was shocked when a murder in Michigan, originally thought to be a gangland slaying, uncovered the existence of the Black Legion, a secret organization which was dedicated to hunting down Negroes, Jews, Catholics, and Communists. State, county, and city employees were required to swear they were not members throughout Michigan, which was the focus of the Black Legion's bombings, fires, floggings, and murders. Ironically, it was under the Michigan criminal syndicalism law, passed to punish Communists, that the investigatory grand jury was launched. More than fifty men in Michigan were sentenced to long prison terms for their vigilante actions. The Black Legion caused a brief national sensation; a leaden movie with this title starred Humphrey Bogart as a factory worker who succumbs to doctrines of hatred. The Ku Klux Klan condemned the Black Legion!

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