He opposed the war, joining the Independent Labour Party, and refused to assist in compiling the National Register, which was to be used for conscription.
Tom became its state vice-president, but as a supporter of the October Revolution, he was a founder of the Communist Party USA split.
[1][2] In 1922, Tom and Amy were detained on Deer Island and threatened with deportation back to the United Kingdom for their communist activism.
[1][2] Back in the UK, Tom published Americanism: A World Menace,[3] which criticised the country for its anti-communism, Fordism, and religious influence in politics.
However, at the end of the year, he resigned from the movement, objecting to the co-option of Sunday Worker representatives onto its governing body.