Aug 18, 2026 - Politics

Sacco and Vanzetti's legacy, 99 years on

Mike Deehan

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The Aug. 23, 1927, front page of the N.Y. Daily News with the headline “DEAD!” above photos of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti. — The N.Y. Daily News front page reports the Aug. 23, 1927, executions of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti at Charlestown State Prison in Mass. Photo: New York Daily News Archive/Getty Images

Massachusetts is marking 99 years this Sunday since Sacco and Vanzetti were put to death at Charlestown State Prison.

Why it matters: The case against two Italian-born anarchists is still debated a century later.

Catch up quick: The 1927 executions were the result of the pair's conviction in a Braintree payroll robbery-murder.

The case drew global protests and remains a touchstone in debates over anti-immigrant bias and judicial fairness.

Flashback: A jury convicted Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti in 1921 and appeals were unsuccessful despite contested ballistics evidence and a third party's confession.

Gov. Michael Dukakis proclaimed in 1977 that they'd been unfairly tried, but he stopped short of a pardon.

What's next: Next Aug. 23 marks the 100th anniversary, when we'll likely see renewed commemorations, museum exhibits and fresh scrutiny of the case's legal legacy.

The bottom line: Historians still disagree on guilt, but the case's mark on Massachusetts law and immigrant history endures today.

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Sacco and Vanzetti's legacy, 99 years on

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