Huey Long was a politician in the 30's whose invigorating style of public speaking drew in audiences of various political affiliations. Much of his speeches catered to working-class individuals who were impacted heavily by unequal distribution of wealth. His most notable speech was his "Share the Wealth" speech in which he urged the government to redistribute the excess wealth of the uber-rich. Despite his popularity with blue-collar workers, Politicians found him to be a threat. His insurgent messages and militant-style conduct lead Roosevelt to consider him the most dangerous man in America.
Shortly before his death, Long claimed he was aware of the assassination plans as his associates overheard 4 congressmen plotting against him. Despite his knowledge of the plan, Long and his associates were not able to adequately prepare for the attempt, as it his assassination was successfully executed on September 8th of 1935 while he was in Baton Rouge for a meeting with the state legislature.
7 comments:
While Huey may have been a significant threat in politics, it is disappointing to see what was done to get rid of him. I wonder if the results of the election would have been different if he hadn't been assassinated.
Very insightful article! I wonder if their were other things at play during assassination because for a man to be considered the most dangerous man by the president of the US, he must have been pretty well protected.
Huey Long was an potential threat to Roosevelt, and then he was assassinated. Does that show that freedom of speech in the US is still not fully achieved? Other potential candidates who opposed Roosevelt might have been put down by this.
While Long was most definable a political threat to Roosevelt, I don't think that Roosevelt would've gone as far as to have him assassinated. Apparently he was killed by the son of a political opponent, but there hasn't been any true closure in the case.
Long had a hold over much of the American population, with his charisma and fervor for the ideals he held. Long posed a significant political threat to Roosevelt, but I'd agree with Malik in that it seems unlikely that Roosevelt was behind the assassination plan. Additionally, there was definitely a number of other politicians that would benefit from getting rid of an outspoken and popular political opponent.
This summary of his assassination raises the question of what the general public's reaction was to the assassination of a very controversial and popular figure like Huey Long.
Looking further into the details of his assassination, after his killer (Carl Weiss) confronted and shot him, he was cornered by Long's bodyguards, and shot 61 times. After word of Long's assassination spread, thousands of Americans attended his funeral.
I think his significance during his life and after his death goes to show the amount of change he could have brought into society if he had been able to live the remainder of his career/life.
It was very interesting how Long had known about this planned assassination that they were planning against him and he didn't do anything to stop it. I think the people felt that it was necessary because he was a threat to Roosevelt and it was the only way to get rid of him and not feel the pressure of him.
Post a Comment