1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910799977803321

Autore

Wood Janice Ruth

Titolo

The struggle for free speech in the United States, 1872-1915 [[electronic resource] ] : Edward Bliss Foote, Edward Bond Foote, and anti-Comstock operations / / Janice Ruth Wood

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New York ; ; London, : Routledge, 2008

ISBN

1-135-89637-2

1-281-10227-X

9786611102272

0-203-93225-0

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (156 p.)

Collana

Studies in American popular history and culture

Disciplina

323.44/3097309034

Soggetti

Freedom of speech - United States - History

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Book Cover; Title; Copyright; Contents; Chapter One Introduction; Chapter Two Historical Background; Chapter Three Legal Encounters with Comstock; Chapter Four Free-Speech Organizational Activities; Chapter Five Personal Involvement in Free-Speech Cases; Chapter Six Conclusions; Appendix; Notes; Bibliography; Index

Sommario/riassunto

Passed in 1873, the Comstock Act banned 'obscene' materials from the mail without defining obscenity, leaving it open to interpretation by courts that were hostile to free speech. Literature that reflected changing attitudes toward sexuality, religion, and social institutions fell victim to the Comstock Act and related state laws. Dr. Edward Bliss Foote became among the earliest individuals convicted under the law after he mailed a brochure on birth-control methods. For the next four decades, Foote Sr. and his son, Dr. Edward Bond Foote, challenged the Comstock Act in Congress, legislatures