Editing Robert H. Jackson (section)

====Background====
In 1951, the Supreme Court decided ''[[Dennis v. United States]]''.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> In Dennis, the petitioners were zealous [[Communism|Communists]] who organized for the purpose of teaching the "Marxist-Leninist Doctrine."<ref>''Dennis v. United States'' p. 582 (Douglas, J. Dissenting)</ref> The principal texts used to teach the doctrine were: ''History of the Communist Party of the [[Soviet Union]]''; ''Foundations of Leninism'' by [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]]; ''[[The Communist Manifesto]]'' by [[Karl Marx|Marx]] and [[Friedrich Engels|Engels]]; and ''[[State and Revolution]]'' by [[Vladimir Lenin|Lenin]].<ref name="ReferenceA"/> The Petitioners were convicted for violating clause 2 and clause 3 of the Smith Act which, among other things, made it unlawful to conspire to organize a group which advocates the overthrow of the United States government by force or violence.<ref>''Dennis v. United States'' at 495; see also, 54 Stat. 671.</ref> The issue before the Supreme Court was "[w]hether either §2 or §3 of the [[Smith Act]], inherently, or as construed and applied in the instant case, violates the First Amendment and other provisions of the Bill of Rights ..."<ref>''Dennis v. United States'' at 495–496.</ref>