The modern American war tax resistance movement was born around . Here are a couple of newspaper bits from its earliest years.
From the Tonawanda Evening News, :
U.S. Is Confident “Holdouts” Will Pay Their Income Taxes
Washington (UP) — The Internal Revenue Bureau is confident that it will collect any income taxes which may be owed by the “peacemakers” or other protestors.
Several of the peacemakers organization have stated their opposition to income taxes. They take the stand that a large proportion of the tax goes into equipment for war. They’re against war so they’re against helping to finance it. They say they won’t pay that part of their taxes which they say is alloted for military purposes.
Internal Revenue Bureau officials say they have found that most of these threats are made for publicity purposes. The end result is that the people usually come forward and pay, a spokesman said.
However, if they don’t meet their tax bills, then they get notices by mail. If that sort of prodding doesn’t work, then an agent will call. That’s usually all that’s necessary.
Such cases seldom get into court, the spokesman said. The bureau, he added, uses the “horse sense” approach.
Such journalism!
From the Brookfield Courier, :
“Peacemakers” Urge Refusal of Income Tax Payments … New Yorkers in a last-minute visit to the income tax bureau in order to beat the dead-line found these pickets of the “peacemakers” on hand telling all and sundry to refuse to pay taxes. The members of the “peacemakers” carried placards and handed out circulars saying that 75 per cent or more of taxes is used for war purpose — therefore it was up to everybody who wanted to prevent war to refuse to pay the taxes. The signs also urged the crowd to refuse to be drafted. However, stoical New Yorkers took the picket line and its admonitions in stride and there were no reports that the demonstration induced anyone either to forego paying taxes or registering.
