Crossing over the Line: Legislating Morality and the Mann Act by David J. Langum

Description: FREE SHIPPING UK WIDE Crossing over the Line by David J. Langum "Crossing over the Line" describes the folly of the Mann Act of 1910—a United States law which made travel from one state to another by a man and a woman with the intent of committing an immoral act a major crime. Spawned by a national wave of "white slave trade" hysteria, the Act was created by the Congress of the United States as a weapon against forced prostitution.This book is the first history of the Mann Act's often bizarre career, from its passage to the amendment that finally laid it low. In David J. Langum's hands, the story of the Act becomes an entertaining cautionary tale about the folly of legislating private morality.Langum recounts the colorful details of numerous court cases to show how enforcement of the Act mirrored changes in America's social attitudes. Federal prosecutors became masters in the selective use of the Act: against political opponents of the government, like Charlie Chaplin; against individuals who eluded other criminal charges, like the Capone mobster "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn; and against black men, like singer Chuck Berry and boxer Jack Johnson, who dared to consort with white women. The Act engendered a thriving blackmail industry and was used by women like Frank Lloyd Wright's wife to extort favorable divorce settlements."Crossing over the Line is a work of scholarship as wrought by a civil libertarian, and the text . . . sizzles with the passion of an ardent believer in real liberty under reasonable laws."—Jonathan Kirsch, "Los Angeles Times" FORMAT Paperback LANGUAGE English CONDITION Brand New Publisher Description Crossing over the Line describes the folly of the Mann Act of 1910—a United States law which made travel from one state to another by a man and a woman with the intent of committing an immoral act a major crime. Spawned by a national wave of "white slave trade" hysteria, the Act was created by the Congress of the United States as a weapon against forced prostitution. This book is the first history of the Mann Acts often bizarre career, from its passage to the amendment that finally laid it low. In David J. Langums hands, the story of the Act becomes an entertaining cautionary tale about the folly of legislating private morality.Langum recounts the colorful details of numerous court cases to show how enforcement of the Act mirrored changes in Americas social attitudes. Federal prosecutors became masters in the selective use of the Act: against political opponents of the government, like Charlie Chaplin; against individuals who eluded other criminal charges, like the Capone mobster "Machine Gun" Jack McGurn; and against black men, like singer Chuck Berry and boxer Jack Johnson, who dared to consort with white women. The Act engendered a thriving blackmail industry and was used by women like Frank Lloyd Wrights wife to extort favorable divorce settlements. "Crossing over the Line is a work of scholarship as wrought by a civil libertarian, and the text . . . sizzles with the passion of an ardent believer in real liberty under reasonable laws."—Jonathan Kirsch, Los Angeles Times Author Biography David J. Langum is research professor of law at Samford University and the author of numerous books, including William M. Kunstler: The Most Hated Lawyer in America. Table of Contents List of Illustrations Acknowledgments 1: How Times Have Changed 2: Prostitutes, Progressives, and Moral Panic, 1907-1914 3: Early Enforcement, 1910-1916 4: Blackmail and Extortion 5: The Case of Caminetti v. United States 6: Pieces of the Caminetti Puzzle 7: The Morals Crusade, 1917-1928 8: The Focus Shifts, 1929-1943 9: The Crusade Sputters, 1944-1959 10: The Mann Act and the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s 11: The Collapse of Federal Standards of Morality Appendix: White Slave Traffic Act [Mann Act] of 1910 Notes Index Details ISBN0226468704 Author David J. Langum Short Title CROSSING OVER THE LINE Language English ISBN-10 0226468704 ISBN-13 9780226468709 Media Book Format Paperback Illustrations Yes Year 2007 Imprint University of Chicago Press Subtitle Legislating Morality and the Mann Act Place of Publication Chicago, IL Country of Publication United States Birth 1940 Series Chicago Series on Sexuality, History, and Society (Paperback) Residence US Edition New edition DOI 10.1604/9780226468709 UK Release Date 2007-01-01 AU Release Date 2007-01-01 NZ Release Date 2007-01-01 US Release Date 2007-01-01 Pages 324 Publisher The University of Chicago Press Publication Date 2007-01-01 DEWEY 345.7302534 Audience Professional & Vocational We've got this At The Nile, if you're looking for it, we've got it. With fast shipping, low prices, friendly service and well over a million items - you're bound to find what you want, at a price you'll love! 30 DAY RETURN POLICY No questions asked, 30 day returns! 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