Portal:Human sexuality

Margaret Higgins Sanger (September 14, 1879 – September 6, 1966) was an American birth control activist, sex educator, and nurse. Sanger popularized the term birth control, opened the first birth control clinic in the United States, and established organizations that evolved into the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Sanger's efforts contributed to several judicial cases that helped legalize contraception in the United States. Sanger is a frequent target of criticism by opponents of birth control and has also been criticized for supporting eugenics, but remains an iconic figure in the American reproductive rights movement.

In 1916, Sanger opened the first birth control clinic in the United States, which led to her arrest for distributing information on contraception. Her subsequent trial and appeal generated enormous support for her cause. Sanger felt that in order for women to have a more equal footing in society and to lead healthier lives, they needed to be able to determine when to bear children. She also wanted to prevent unsafe abortions, so-called back-alley abortions, which were common at the time because abortions were usually illegal.

In 1921, Sanger founded the American Birth Control League, which later became the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. In New York City, she organized the first birth control clinic staffed by all-female doctors, as well as a clinic in Harlem with an entirely African-American staff. In 1929, she formed the National Committee on Federal Legislation for Birth Control, which served as the focal point of her lobbying efforts to legalize contraception in the United States. From 1952 to 1959, Sanger served as president of the International Planned Parenthood Federation. She died in 1966, and is widely regarded as a founder of the modern birth control movement. (Full article...)

 • ... that because of an effort to curb the spread of STDs, prostitution in Germany has been legal since the 1920s? (German prostitute pictured)
 • ... that some people in the BDSM community are sexually aroused by being gagged? (ball gag pictured)
 • ... that a strap-on dildo (pictured) may be used by heterosexual couples for the sexual practice of pegging?
 • ... that the Exotic World Burlesque Museum is located on the site of an abandoned goat farm?
 • ... that the story of Sada Abe (pictured), a woman who cut off her dead lover's genitals and carried them around with her for days, is one of Japan's most notorious scandals?

2004-2005

29 July 2024 – Sudanese civil war

Human Rights Watch reports widespread acts of sexual violence in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, including gang rape and forced marriages committed by the army and Rapid Support Forces. (Reuters)

29 July 2024 –

Far-right Israeli protestors, including several members of the Knesset, storm the Sde Teiman detention camp after military police from the defense forces detained nine reservists on suspicion of sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee. (Haaretz)

21 July 2024 – 2024 Bangladesh quota reform movement

The Supreme Court of Bangladesh reduces the government job quota reserved for families of veterans who fought in the Bangladesh Liberation War from 30% to 5%, leaving 93% of jobs to be allocated on merit and 2% set aside for ethnic minorities, transgender, and disabled people. (AP)

18 July 2024 – LGBT rights in South Korea

The Supreme Court of South Korea rules that same-sex couples are eligible to receive the same health insurance benefits as heterosexual couples. (AP)

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