Courtney Q. Shah - Gender and Race in American History: Sex Ed, Segregated : The Quest for Sexual Knowledge in Progressive-Era America Volume 6 in DOC
9781580465359 1580465358 Against the backdrop of the Progressive Era, World War I, and the 1920s, sex education took root in the United States through institutions like the YMCA, the popular press, girls' schools, and the US military. As access to sexual knowledge increased, reformers debated what the messages of a sex education curriculum would be and (perhaps more important) who would learn those messages. But, just as in our own era, sex education had as much to do with politics and morals as it did with biology and medicine. Courtney Shah's study brings to light the way different population groups in the United States were presented with contrasting types of discussion on sex, aptly demonstrating how sex education could be used as a tool to reinforce or defy racial segregation, women's rights, religious diversity, and class identity. Courtney Shah is professor of history at Lower Columbia College in Longview, Washington., In Sex Ed, Segregated, Courtney Shah examines the Progressive Era sex education movement, which presented the possibility of helping people understand their own health and sexuality, but which most often divided audiences along rigid lines of race, class, and gender. Reformers' assumptions about their audience's place in the political hierarchy played a crucial role in the development of a mainstream sex education movement by the 1920s. Reformers and instructors taught middle-class youth, African-Americans, and World War I soldiers different stories, for different reasons. Shah's examination of "character-building" organizations like the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) and the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) reveals how the white, middle-class ideal reflected cultural assumptions about sexuality and formed an aspirational model for upward mobility to those not in the privileged group, such as immigrant or working class youth. In addition, as Shah argues, the battle over policing young women's sexual behavior during World War I pitted middle-class women against their working-class counterparts. Sex Ed, Segregated demonstrates that the intersection between race, gender, and class formed the backbone of Progressive-Era debates over sex education, the policing of sexuality, and the prevention of venereal disease. Courtney Shah is an instructor at Lower Columbia College, Washington., In the early twentieth century, as access to sexual knowledge increased, reformers debated what the messages of a sex education curriculum would be and (perhaps more importantly) who would learn those messages. Educators' assumptions about their audience's place in the political hierarchy played a crucial role in the development of a mainstream sex education movement. Against the backdrop of the Progressive Era, World War I, and the 1920s, sex education took root in the United States through institutions like the YMCA, the popular press, girls' schools, and the U.S. military. But, just like today, sex education had as much to do with politics and morals as it did with biology and medicine. Sex education could be used as a tool to expand or defy racial segregation, women's rights, religious diversity, and class identity. Courtney Shah is Professor of History at Lower Columbia College in Longview, Washington. .
9781580465359 1580465358 Against the backdrop of the Progressive Era, World War I, and the 1920s, sex education took root in the United States through institutions like the YMCA, the popular press, girls' schools, and the US military. As access to sexual knowledge increased, reformers debated what the messages of a sex education curriculum would be and (perhaps more important) who would learn those messages. But, just as in our own era, sex education had as much to do with politics and morals as it did with biology and medicine. Courtney Shah's study brings to light the way different population groups in the United States were presented with contrasting types of discussion on sex, aptly demonstrating how sex education could be used as a tool to reinforce or defy racial segregation, women's rights, religious diversity, and class identity. Courtney Shah is professor of history at Lower Columbia College in Longview, Washington., In Sex Ed, Segregated, Courtney Shah examines the Progressive Era sex education movement, which presented the possibility of helping people understand their own health and sexuality, but which most often divided audiences along rigid lines of race, class, and gender. Reformers' assumptions about their audience's place in the political hierarchy played a crucial role in the development of a mainstream sex education movement by the 1920s. Reformers and instructors taught middle-class youth, African-Americans, and World War I soldiers different stories, for different reasons. Shah's examination of "character-building" organizations like the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) and the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) reveals how the white, middle-class ideal reflected cultural assumptions about sexuality and formed an aspirational model for upward mobility to those not in the privileged group, such as immigrant or working class youth. In addition, as Shah argues, the battle over policing young women's sexual behavior during World War I pitted middle-class women against their working-class counterparts. Sex Ed, Segregated demonstrates that the intersection between race, gender, and class formed the backbone of Progressive-Era debates over sex education, the policing of sexuality, and the prevention of venereal disease. Courtney Shah is an instructor at Lower Columbia College, Washington., In the early twentieth century, as access to sexual knowledge increased, reformers debated what the messages of a sex education curriculum would be and (perhaps more importantly) who would learn those messages. Educators' assumptions about their audience's place in the political hierarchy played a crucial role in the development of a mainstream sex education movement. Against the backdrop of the Progressive Era, World War I, and the 1920s, sex education took root in the United States through institutions like the YMCA, the popular press, girls' schools, and the U.S. military. But, just like today, sex education had as much to do with politics and morals as it did with biology and medicine. Sex education could be used as a tool to expand or defy racial segregation, women's rights, religious diversity, and class identity. Courtney Shah is Professor of History at Lower Columbia College in Longview, Washington. .