Politically driven show trials move from campus to culture

In The Trial of the Chicago 7, Aaron Sorkin’s award-winning 2020 legal drama, activist Abbie Hoffman urges lawyer William Kunstler to recognize that “this is a political trial that was already decided for us. Ignoring that reality is just weird to me.”

Kunstler, who in real life was known as a master of political lawyering, disagrees with his Yippie client. Kunstler insists, “There are civil trials, and there are criminal trials. There’s no such thing as a political trial.” Hoffman smirks knowingly. The rest of the movie unfolds as a vindication of Hoffman’s view. The show trial of the Chicago Seven for inciting a riot was nothing if not political, and their conviction was nothing if not preordained.