Changes

==Political career==

==Political career==

===Governor of Oregon===

===Governor of Oregon===

A [[progressive]] and ally of the [[Ku Klux Klan]],<ref name=oregonencyclopediabio>[https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/pierce_walter_1861_1954_/ Walter Pierce (1861-1954)]. ''Oregon Encyclopedia''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref> Pierce faced incumbent [[Republican]] Benjamin W. Olcott in the general election. During the campaign, Olcott issued a proclamation which denounced the Klan for three assaults the terrorist group perpetrated.<ref>[https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/historical-records/proclamation-against-the-ku-klux-klan-1922/#.YJHE7qGn2Uk Proclamation Against the Ku Klux Klan, 1922]. ''The Oregon History Project''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref> However, Pierce won the general election by fifteen percentage points.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=263433 OR Governor Race - Nov 07, 1922]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref>

A [[progressive]] and ally of the [[Ku Klux Klan]],<ref name=oregonencyclopediabio>[https://www.oregonencyclopedia.org/articles/pierce_walter_1861_1954_/ Walter Pierce (1861-1954)]. ''Oregon Encyclopedia''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref><ref name=nationalcatholicregister>DeMarco, Donald (August 5, 2011). [https://www.ncregister.com/commentaries/how-some-nuns-defeated-the-ku-klux-klan How Some Nuns Defeated the Ku Klux Klan]. ''National Catholic Register''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref> Pierce faced incumbent [[Republican]] Benjamin W. Olcott in the general election. During the campaign, Olcott issued a proclamation which denounced the Klan for three assaults the terrorist group perpetrated.<ref>[https://www.oregonhistoryproject.org/articles/historical-records/proclamation-against-the-ku-klux-klan-1922/#.YJHE7qGn2Uk Proclamation Against the Ku Klux Klan, 1922]. ''The Oregon History Project''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref> However, Pierce won the general election by fifteen percentage points.<ref>[https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=263433 OR Governor Race - Nov 07, 1922]. ''Our Campaigns''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref>

Pierce backed the Klan's agenda by supporting the Compulsory Public Education Act, which forced all children in the state to attend [[public schools]]. It was especially aimed to prevent [[Catholics]], who the KKK despised, from being able to send their children to private schools. The Act was struck down three years later in the [[United States Supreme Court]] case ''[[Pierce v. Society of Sisters]]'', where the unanimous opinion stated:<ref>[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/law/court-cases/pierce-v-society-sisters Pierce v. Society of Sisters]. ''Encyclopedia.com''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref>

Pierce backed the Klan's agenda by supporting the Compulsory Public Education Act, which forced all children in the state to attend [[public schools]].<ref name=nationalcatholicregister/> It was especially aimed to prevent [[Catholics]], who the KKK despised, from being able to send their children to private schools. The Act was struck down three years later in the [[United States Supreme Court]] case ''[[Pierce v. Society of Sisters]]'',<ref name=nationalcatholicregister/> where the unanimous opinion stated:<ref>[https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences-and-law/law/court-cases/pierce-v-society-sisters Pierce v. Society of Sisters]. ''Encyclopedia.com''. Retrieved July 3, 2021.</ref>

{{cquote|'''The child is not the mere creature of the state.'''}}

{{cquote|'''The child is not the mere creature of the state.'''}}