21 Facts About Comstock laws

1.

The laws were named after their chief proponent, US Postal Inspector and anti-vice activist Anthony Comstock.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,158
2.

Restrictions on birth control in the Comstock laws were effectively rendered null and void by Supreme Court decisions Griswold v Connecticut and Eisenstadt v Baird .

FactSnippet No. 1,142,159
3.

The federal Comstock laws are quite full in expression, and perhaps served as model for most of the states.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,160
4.

Almost everything denounced under any of these Comstock laws is nonmailable under the Comstock laws of the United States, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, and New York.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,161
5.

Four States have Comstock laws authorizing the search for and seizure of contraceptive instructions, and these are: Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Oklahoma.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,162
6.

Comstock laws targeted pornography, contraceptive equipment, and such educational materials as descriptions of contraceptive methods and other reproductive health-related materials.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,163
7.

However, it is claimed that Comstock laws had "no intention of penalizing normal birth control information" .

FactSnippet No. 1,142,164
8.

Anthony Comstock laws stated that he was determined to act the part of a good citizen, meaning that he had every intention of upholding the law.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,165
9.

Comstock laws started off by beginning a campaign against the saloons in his New York neighborhood of Brooklyn.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,166
10.

Comstock laws blamed his death on him being "led astray and corrupted and diseased".

FactSnippet No. 1,142,167
11.

Comstock laws became linked with the YMCA shortly after writing a financial request for funding of his efforts.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,168
12.

Comstock laws was invited to speak before the YMCA's Committee on Obscene Literature to present how he used the funds the organization had provided.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,169
13.

Comstock laws was eventually hired by the association to help fight for the suppression of vice.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,170
14.

Comstock laws made it a goal to include better language in a new law .

FactSnippet No. 1,142,171
15.

Comstock laws used a connection with Justice William Strong to pass the bill on to William Windom, a senator from Minnesota, with the request that he take the bill to the floor of the Senate.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,172
16.

Comstock laws argued that the corruption in the schools and in the home were because of all of the obscene literature that the youth had easy access to.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,173
17.

Comstock laws argued that the vast amounts of "obscenity" would cause for the sanctity of marriage to be corrupted along with the power of the church.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,174
18.

Comstock laws mainly focused on voicing his concerns to families of privilege; this is how he gained a majority of his support.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,175
19.

The National Defense Association had been established shortly after the Comstock Laws were enacted in order to combat the resulting loss of civil liberties and restrictions on freedom of the press, and to preserve access to works of art or literature which were deemed obscene under the Comstock Act.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,176
20.

Comstock laws dismissed the petition, alleging that the list was made up of forged signatures and false names.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,177
21.

Comstock laws complained that "the public press throughout the country" had supported the petitioners and their movement.

FactSnippet No. 1,142,178