Margaret Sanger

1. Margaret Sanger Gabby Molloy & Michelle Dumont

2. Early Life • Born September 14, 1879 in Corning, New York • Sanger had 11 brothers and sisters • Her mother had several miscarriages, and Margaret believed that all of those pregnancies contributed to her early death at the age of 40 • The family lived in poverty because her father did not have a steady job and was an alcoholic

3. Early Life Continued • Sanger attended Claverak College and Hudson River Institute in 1896 • She then enrolled in White Plains Hospital in 1900 to study nursing for four years • She married William Sanger in 1902 • The two had three children together • The Sangers moved to New York City in 1910 settling in Greenwich Village

4. Sex Inequality for Women • At this time, abortions were illegal and women were forced to give birth to unwanted pregnancies • Women did not have control over their bodies and were not given the right to decide if they wanted to have a child or not • Basically all Americans associated the use of birth control technique with prostitution and women were frowned upon for being knowledgeable in the subject

5. Start of Political Activism • After moving to Manhattan, Sanger joined the Women’s Committee of the New York Socialist Party and the Liberal Club • The Sangers began socializing with other activists such as Upton Sinclair and Emma Goldman • She participated in a number of strikes in support of the Industrial Workers of the World Union

6. Sex Education • In 1912 she began writing a newspaper column called “What Every Girl Should Know,” starting her campaign to educate women about sex • Her interest in birth control rights began when she worked as a nurse in the Lower East Side treating women who had gone through back-ally abortions or tried to self-terminate their pregnancies • She started fighting to make birth control information available to women because of the unnecessary suffering that she saw these women go through • Sanger started a feminist publication called The Woman Rebel, which promoted a woman's right to have birth control

7. Political Activism Continued • She worked hard to overturn the Comstock Act of 1873, which criminalized the sale of birth control and the giving of birth control information • Because of these laws, she got into trouble with the law because of the publication she wrote • Instead of facing a 5 year jail sentence, she fled to England where she continued her Women’s Movement and researched other forms of birth control

8. Achievments • Sanger returned to the United States in 1915 and the charges were dropped • She coined the term “birth control” and opened her first clinic in 1916 • Sanger and her staff were arrested and her clinic was raided nine days after the opening • She spent 30 days in jail for breaking the Comstock Law and scored a victory for the Birth Control Movement when she later appealed her conviction

9. Achievements Continued • She published her first issue of “The Birth Control Review” • In 1921, Sanger established the American Birth Control League, which is the Planned Parenthood Federation of America today • In 1923, she opened the first legal birth control clinic in the United States named The Birth Control Clinic Research Bureau

11. After Retirement • Sanger established the International Planned Parenthood Federation in 1952 after her retirement • Sanger teamed up with human reproduction expert, Gregory Pincus, to make her dream of the “magic pill” come true • Katherine McCormick gave her the necessary financial support which yielded the first oral contraceptive called Enovid • Enovid was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1960 • In 1965, the Supreme Court ruled birth control legal for married couples in its decision in Griswold v. Connecticut • Sanger died in a nursing home in Tuscon, Arizona on September 6, 1966

12. Legacy • Just three years after the FDA approved the pill in 1963, over 2.3 million American women were taking the pill • More than 99% of women aged 15-44 who have ever had sexual intercourse have used at least one contraceptive method • 62% of all women of reproductive age are currently using a contraceptive method • Margaret Sanger laid down the building blocks for women to have rights over their own body and decision to use birth control

13. Quotes • "No woman can call herself free until she can choose consciously whether she will or will not be a mother," Sanger said.

14. Explanation • Margaret Sanger is saying that the right to decide whether a woman wants to or does not want to have a baby is the most important right a woman can have. She cannot feel free until she can decide if she wants a child.

15. Quote • “Every child a wanted child.” – Sanger Margaret is saying that abortion should be legal. Children that are not wanted should not be born to be subjected to unfair treatment because they were not planned or cannot be properly cared for. Abortion can limit poverty of children and prevent unlawful treatment of children.

16. Works Cited • http://www.biography.com/people/margaret-sanger-9471186?page=3 • https://www.nwhm.org/education-resources/biography/biographies/margaret-sanger/