EUGENE V. DEBS (1855-1926 born in Terre Haute, IN)

On trial for speaking in opposition to U.S. involvment in the 1st World War, Debs stated at his hearing:

"Your honor, years ago I recognized my kinship with all living beings, and I made up my mind that I was not one bit better than the meanest on earth. I said then, and I say now, that while there is a lower class, I am in it, and while there is a criminal element I am of it, and while there is a soul in prison, I am not free."

Debs would spend the next 2 years behind bars.