Social purity movement
The Social Purity Movement was a social initiative in the late nineteenth century aimed at addressing sexual immorality, particularly concerning women. It emerged in England, responding to the rising prevalence of sex work and brothels during this period. Advocates, primarily women, believed that economic hardship was a significant factor driving women into prostitution, while others attributed the issue to broader societal changes, such as industrialization. Led by figures like Ellice Hopkins, the movement sought to promote sexual purity through education and moral guidance, culminating in the passage of the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1885, which empowered law enforcement to act against brothels.
Despite its intentions, the movement faced criticism for its classist undertones, as many activists were from privileged backgrounds imposing their morals on marginalized women. The closures of brothels often left many women and children facing poverty and homelessness, revealing a gap in understanding the economic realities that forced some women into sex work. Additionally, the movement's focus on women's purity overlooked the male clientele, reinforcing traditional gender dynamics. Ultimately, while the Social Purity Movement aimed to rescue women from what was perceived as a social evil, it inadvertently highlighted issues of economic dependency and class inequality within society.
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Social purity movement
The Social Purity Movement was a nineteenth-century social movement intended to combat sexual impurity in women. Specifically, it was concerned with the sharp rise in the number of brothels and sex workers in England during the late nineteenth century. At the time, politicians and social leaders debated the reasons for the rise in prostitution. Though some theorized that a general lack of options for economic independence led women to prostitution, others believed that liberal political movements were to blame.
The Social Purity Movement helped pass the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1885, which gave police greater authority when investigating sex work. Though this act successfully led to the shutdown of many of Britain’s brothels, members of the Social Purity Movement were unprepared for the number of women and children pushed into poverty by the removal of sex work as a viable source of income. The movement was also criticized from a classist perspective for having wealthy women dictate morals to low-income women.
Background
Social movements occur when large groups of people organize and work to achieve a specific goal. In most cases, this goal is related to a social or political issue. Members of a social movement may be trying to force some specific type of change to occur or stop the proliferation of an idea.
Social movements differ from crowds and mobs because they are organized. They have pre-stated goals, leadership, and funding. Social movements spend the downtime between demonstrations or protests recruiting, planning, and working to maximize the results of their efforts. Because of this, social movements have been the historic catalyst for political and social change throughout much of human history. Social movements convince people to question their societal norms and push for change that benefits a segment of society.
Though individual leaders may play a role in a social movement, a protest must constitute the effort of many people to qualify as a movement. Individuals participating in the movement should experience a sense of membership or camaraderie. They should also share a set of common values related to the potential goals of the social movement. To achieve widespread political or social change, social movements are required to recruit aggressively. To do this, they must convince potential members that the change they promote is both pressing and necessary. Failure to recruit large numbers of people quickly results in a failed social movement.
Overview
The Social Purity Movement was a nineteenth-century social movement heavily influenced by the Christian morality of the era. At the time, the movement was particularly notable because it was composed primarily of women who had previously been denied the political agency necessary to create widespread social change.
The Social Purity Movement was led by Ellice Hopkins, a devoutly religious activist. Hopkins founded the Ladies Association for the Care of Friendless Girls, which quickly spread, eventually maintaining more than one hundred branches across England. The organization was intended to educate young women on matters of sexual purity, encouraging them to make chaste choices throughout their lives.
Hopkins believed that the “Great Social Evil” plaguing the Victorian era was the spread of sex work. At the time, the number of sex workers in England was increasing. Many political and religious leaders of the era struggled to discover why. Some argued that sex work could be tied to socialism, while others contended that it could be blamed on the spread of industrialization. Some male politicians and activists argued that sex work and other forms of “social deviance” were the result of mental health conditions, and people participating in such acts should be forcefully treated by doctors.
Still others blamed the rise in sex work on unemployment and poverty. They argued that England’s new laws made life harsher for the impoverished segments of society. Because all people in a poverty-stricken household were expected to try to contribute, women turned to sex work to support their families.
Members of Hopkins’ organization believed that women needed regular assistance to avoid the pitfalls that lead to sex work. They also believed that women of the era were regularly abducted and forced into sex work. They worked to secure the passage of the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1885, which gave law enforcement greater freedoms when pursuing brothel workers and owners.
The Social Purity Movement quickly resulted in the police shutting down many brothels. However, the members of the movement were unaware of the negative impact that such closures would have on women living in poverty. The wealthy activists soon learned that many women were resorting to sex work out of economic necessity, and taking away their primary means of revenue left their families at risk of extreme poverty. In Aldershot, the removal of the majority of the city’s brothels resulted in more than four hundred women and children becoming homeless.
Additionally, the Social Purity Movement was criticized for being classist and sexist. Because many of the women who participated in the movement were wealthy, the movement was portrayed as the upper classes continuing to exert control over the daily lives of underprivileged individuals. Critics argued that the movement was unfair to these women, removing their personal agency and forcing them to conform to the moral values of others. Similarly, while the social movement railed against the evils of sex work and sought to rescue women from the practice, it did nothing to prevent men from seeking sex from working women. In this way, the movement worked to reduce the sexual independence of women while leaving the sexual independence of men untouched.
Bibliography
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"The Sexual Child and the Social Purity Movement." Theorizing the Sexual Child in Modernity, 2022, link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9780230106000‗3. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.
"Social Purity." PBS, 2022, pbs.org/kenburns/not-for-ourselves-alone/social-purity. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.
Tyson, Khadija. "The Social Purity Movement." Gender & Sexuality in World History, 7 Nov. 2023, genderhistory.pubpub.org/pub/6ost5o8f/release/1. Accessed 20 Nov. 2024.