The Free Speech League was a progressive organization in the United States that fought to support

freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recogni ...

in the early years of the twentieth century. The League focused on combating government censorship, particularly relating to political speech and sexual material.

History

The League's main advocates included

Edward Bliss Foote Edward Bliss Foote (February 20, 1829 – October 5, 1906) was an American doctor, author, and advocate for birth control. Biography Edward Bliss Foote was born in Cleveland on February 20, 1829. In 1858, he published '' Medical Common S ...

, his son Edward Bond Foote,

Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born anarchist political activist and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europe in the first half of the ...

, and

Theodore Schroeder Albert Theodore Schroeder (September 17, 1864 – February 10, 1953) was an American author who wrote on issues pertaining to freedom of expression. Schroeder challenged the state of freedom of speech in the United States, claiming that the US g ...

. Other free speech advocates of that era included

Ezra Heywood Ezra Hervey Heywood (; September 29, 1829 – May 22, 1893) was an American individualist anarchist, slavery abolitionist, and advocate of equal rights for women. Philosophy Heywood saw what he believed to be a disproportionate concentration of ...

Ben Reitman __NOTOC__ Ben Lewis Reitman M.D. (1879–1943) was an American anarchist and physician to the poor ("the hobo doctor"). He is best remembered today as one of radical Emma Goldman's lovers. Reitman was a flamboyant, eccentric character. Emma Goldm ...

Moses Harman Moses Harman (October 12, 1830January 30, 1910) was an American schoolteacher and publisher notable for his staunch support for women's rights. He was prosecuted under the Comstock Law for content published in his anarchist periodical ''Lucifer ...

, and

D. M. Bennett DeRobigne Mortimer Bennett (December 23, 1818 – December 6, 1882), best known as D. M. Bennett, was the founder and publisher of ''Truth Seeker'', a radical freethought and reform American periodical. Biography Shaker Life Derobigne M. Ben ...

. The league was formed in 1902. Two other members involved in the league's creation were Bob Robins and

Lucy Robins Lang Lucy Fox Robins Lang (March 30, 1884 – January 25, 1962) was an American activist involved with the American Federation of Labor (AFL) and the fight for amnesty for political prisoners. She is best known for her work with Emma Goldman and Samuel G ...

. In 1908 its goals were reported as "freedom of peaceable assembly, of discussion and of propaganda; an uncensored press, telegraph and telephone; an uninspected express; an inviolable mail." To achieve these goals, the League worked through the press, public speaking and the courts, feeling that "the education of brains and quickening of consciences are first in order of time and effect." The League's Secretary at the time was A. C. Pleydell of 175

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

in New York. The League was officially incorporated on April 7, 1911, in Albany, New York.''The Twentieth century magazine, Volume 4'', p 274 The league's charter included the goal: "by all lawful means to oppose every form of government censorship over any method for the expression, communication or transmission of ideas... and to promote such legislative enactments and constitutional amendments, state and national, as will secure these ends." One of the primary targets of the League was the

Comstock Laws The Comstock laws were a set of federal acts passed by the United States Congress under the Grant administration along with related state laws.Dennett p.9 The "parent" act (Sect. 211) was passed on March 3, 1873, as the Act for the Suppression of ...

. After the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, a

social purity movement The social purity movement was a late 19th-century social movement that sought to abolish prostitution and other sexual activities that were considered immoral according to Christian morality. The movement was active in English-speaking nations fr ...

grew in strength, aimed at outlawing

vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

in general, and

prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...

and

obscenity An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be use ...

in particular. Composed primarily of Protestant moral reformers and middle-class women, the

Victorian-era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardi ...

campaign also attacked

contraception Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

, which was viewed as an

immoral Immorality is the violation of moral laws, norms or standards. It refers to an agent doing or thinking something they know or believe to be wrong. Immorality is normally applied to people or actions, or in a broader sense, it can be applied to gr ...

practice which promoted prostitution and

venereal disease Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), also referred to as sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and the older term venereal diseases, are infections that are spread by sexual activity, especially vaginal intercourse, anal sex, and oral se ...

. A leader of the purity movement was

Anthony Comstock Anthony Comstock (March 7, 1844 – September 21, 1915) was an anti-vice activist, United States Postal Inspector, and secretary of the New York Society for the Suppression of Vice (NYSSV), who was dedicated to upholding Christian morality. He op ...

, a

postal inspector Postal inspector may refer to: * The United States Postal Inspection Service (or USPIS), the law enforcement arm of the United States Postal Service * ''Postal Inspector'', a 1936 American film directed by Otto Brower See also * The Inspectors (TV ...

who successfully lobbied for the passage of the 1873 Comstock Act, a federal law prohibiting mailing of any material deemed to be obscene or related to sex in any way. Many states also passed similar state laws (collectively known as the ''Comstock laws''), sometimes extending the federal law by outlawing the ''use'' of contraceptives, as well as their distribution. Comstock was proud of the fact that he was personally responsible for thousands of arrests and the destruction of hundreds of tons of books and pamphlets. When an English anarchist named

John Turner John Napier Wyndham Turner (June 7, 1929September 19, 2020) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 17th prime minister of Canada from June to September 1984. He served as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and leader of t ...

was arrested under the Anarchist Exclusion Act and threatened with deportation, Emma Goldman joined forces with the Free Speech League to champion his cause. The league enlisted the aid of

Clarence Darrow Clarence Seward Darrow (; April 18, 1857 – March 13, 1938) was an American lawyer who became famous in the early 20th century for his involvement in the Leopold and Loeb murder trial and the Scopes "Monkey" Trial. He was a leading member of t ...

and

Edgar Lee Masters Edgar Lee Masters (August 23, 1868 – March 5, 1950) was an American attorney, poet, biographer, and dramatist. He is the author of ''Spoon River Anthology'', ''The New Star Chamber and Other Essays'', ''Songs and Satires'', ''The Great V ...

, who took Turner's case to the

US Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point of ...

. Although Turner and the League lost, Goldman considered it a victory of

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

. She had returned to anarchist activism, but it was taking its toll on her. "I never felt so weighed down," she wrote to Berkman. "I fear I am forever doomed to remain public property and to have my life worn out through the care for the lives of others."

Margaret Sanger Margaret Higgins Sanger (born Margaret Louise Higgins; September 14, 1879September 6, 1966), also known as Margaret Sanger Slee, was an American birth control activist, sex educator, writer, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term "birth control ...

supported the cause of free speech throughout her career, with a zeal comparable to her support for birth control. Sanger grew up in a home where iconoclastic orator Robert Ingersoll was admired."The Child Who Was Mother to a Woman" from ''The New Yorker'', April 11, 1925, page 11. During the early years of her activism, Sanger viewed birth control primarily as a free-speech issue, rather than a feminist issue, and when she started publishing ''The Woman Rebel'' in 1914, she did so with the express goal of provoking a legal challenge to the Comstock laws banning dissemination of information about contraception.McCann, Carole Ruth (2010), "Women as Leaders in the Contraceptive Movement", in ''Gender and Women's Leadership: A Reference Handbook'', Karen O'Connor (Ed), SAGE, ., pp 750–751. In New York, Emma Goldman introduced Sanger to members of the Free Speech League, such as

and

, and subsequently the League provided funding and advice to help Sanger with legal battles. Around 1917 to 1919, the League gradually disbanded.Graber, p 54

Works by Free Speech League members

* Flower, Benjamin Orange; Schroeder, Theodore; Post, Louse, ''In Defense of Free Speech: Five Essays from the Arena'', 1908 *''Free Speech and the New Alien Law'', Press Bulletins No. 1 and No 2. December 1903. *Schroeder, Theodore, ''Freedom of the Press and 'Obscene' Literature: Three Essays''. 1906 *Schroeder, Theodore, ''Constructive Obscenity'', 1907 *Schroeder, Theodore, ''Our Vanishing Liberty of the Press'', 1907 *Schroeder, Theodore, ''The Scientific Aspect of Due Process Law and Constructive Crimes'', 1908. *Schroeder, Theodore, ''The Conflict Between Religious and Ethical Science'', 1909. *Schroeder, Theodore, (Ed.), ''Free Press Anthology'', Free Speech League, 1909. *Schroeder, Theodore, ''Constitutional free speech defined and defended in an unfinished argument in a case of blasphemy'', Free Speech League, 1919 * Wakeman, Thaddeus, ''Administrative Process of the Postal Department: A Letter to the President'', 1906.

Notes

References

*Engelman, Peter C. (2011), ''A History of the Birth Control Movement in America'', ABC-CLIO, . *Goldman, Emma, Candace Falk, Barry Pateman, Jessica M. Moran, ''Emma Goldman: Making speech free, 1902-1909'', (Anthology), University of California Press, 2004 *Graber, Mark A, ''Transforming Free Speech: The Ambiguous Legacy of Civil Libertarianism'', University of California Press, 1992 *Rabban, David M., ''Free speech in its forgotten years'', Cambridge University Press, 1999 *Wood, Janice Ruth, ''The struggle for free speech in the United States, 1872-1915: Edward Bliss Foote, Edward Bond Foote, and anti-Comstock operations'', Psychology Press, 2008 {{Authority control Freedom of speech Freedom of expression organizations Organizations established in 1902 Legal advocacy organizations in the United States