"Spitting Is Dangerous, Indecent, and Against the Law!” Legislating Health Behavior During the American Tuberculosis Crusade

Publication Date

7-1-2013

Document Type

Article

Organizational Units

College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Center for Judaic Studies

Keywords

Tuberculosis, Jewish history, United States history

Abstract

Tuberculosis was the leading cause of death in early twentieth-century America. Reducing the sputum vector of contagion by changing public behavior initially focused on anti-spitting campaigns. According to most Progressive Era health experts, “promiscuous” spitting was a prime culprit in spreading the disease. Beginning in 1896 in New York, towns and cities throughout America passed anti-spitting legislation, sometimes creating tensions between individual liberty and the need to protect public health, and often highlighting class issues. Progressives viewed anti-spitting legislation in a favorable light because they advocated improving the health and well-being of Americans using state-of-the-art medical knowledge and because they often advocated the use of law and the coercive power of the state to impose order on society.

Copyright Date

7-1-2013

Rights Holder

Jeanne Abrams

Provenance

Received from author

Language

English (eng)

Publication Statement

Copyright held by the author. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Publication Title

Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences

Volume

68

Issue

3

First Page

416

Last Page

450

ISSN

1468-4373

This document is currently not available here.

Find in Compass

Find in WorldCat

Share

COinS