CDAs - Who Opposed the CDAs? Flashcards
Why did people oppose the CDAs - The focus of the laws
The law only focused on the women – it lacked powers to investigate or test men that visited prostitutes and were spreading the diseases
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Did they work?
The CDAs did not work – MP John Stansfeld presented evidence to Parliament that the number of cases of venereal diseases in the army had not decreased – the Army medical report of 1880 showed that the number of cases had increased from 1879
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Concerns about imposing on citizens
There were concerns that the army and the navy were being used to impose order on civilians – in 1866, medical professional and the influential medical journal The Lancet, called for the law to cover northern working-class industrial towns – the 1869 Act included the civilian docks of Southampton
Why did people oppose the CDAs - The laws making the problem worse
The laws made the problem worse – Dr Charles Routh and Prof Henry Lee presented evidence to Parliament that the law was making matters worse because men felt that they were safe if prostitutes were being checked, leading to more spread
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Vague rules
The rules to identify and test women were vague, and women who were working class but not prostitutes could be stopped on suspicion and forced to submit to tests by male doctors – there was no legal definition given of prostitution
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Breaking Habeas Corpus
It broke the age-oil rule of habeas corpus, a civil right from the Magna Carta whereby the gov was only supposed to arrest people based upon evidence, not suspicions and moral ideas
Why did people oppose the CDAs - The legalising of prostitution
Some saw the act as legalising prostitution – several European countries operated a registration system for prostitutes and this was seen as the next step – in 1870, during a parliamentary debate, one MP complained that the law made prostitution a ‘legalised institution – a woman is made a chattel for the use of men’
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Anti-democratic
The law was anti-democratic – women in court were required to prove their innocence and good moral standing by proving they were not involved with men who were not their husband, whether paid or not – the CDAs did not have the burden of proving they were prostitutes
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Increased brutality
Some were concerned that legalising prostitution would lead to increased brutality and desire for younger girls from men de-sensitised to prostitution, which had been happening with soldiers in British controlled India
Why did people oppose the CDAs - Concerns of religious groups
Religious groups such as the Wesleyans and Quakers were concerned that the law set a dangerous precedent by targeting women – it made premarital sex for women an unpardonable sin, while for men, whom the law ignored, premarital sex and paying prostitutes appeared as minor, forgivable sin – these groups wanted both genders to live by Christian moral standards
Did everyone oppose the CDAs - Support for the Acts from medical associations
There was a large amount of support for the Acts – EG when the National Association for the Repeal of the CDAs presented a petition to the Home Sec with the signatures of 50 physicians and surgeons who opposed the Acts, their opponents presented a petition with the signatures of 1000 doctors who supported them
Did everyone oppose the CDAs - Coverage from the Times
The Times initially gave unbalanced coverage to the debate, with far more space given to articles presenting the case for retaining the laws than for those supporting the repeal (though they later took a more balanced view)
Did everyone oppose the CDAs - Headlines in support of the Acts and prominent journals
At least seven front-page headlines during the period were solely in support of the Acts – other influential journals such as the Saturday Review, The Lancet, and the Pall Mall Gazette
Did everyone oppose the CDAs - Difference between signatures on petitions pro and anti CDAs
The support for the laws was small but strong and influential – between 1870 and 1881, the abolition movement presented 10,315 against the CDAs, with a combined 2,015,404 signatures – whereas the groups wanting to keep the laws only presented 45 petitions with a combined 3,579 signatures, 28 of these coming from areas already covered by the acts, showing that even in affected areas there was some support – these supporters were effective at dragging out the debate for 16 years
