Posted on 07/08/2012 2:29:58 PM PDT by DogByte6RER
Anti-Prostitution Posters, World War II
Emphasizing the relationship between patriotism, morality, health preservation, and disease prevention, images of the infected soldier and disease-carrying prostitute in posters during the First and Second World Wars came to symbolize both moral failure and social decay. The following posters use images of "loose" women, patriotic iconography, and frightening symbols to grab the attention of the viewer and inspire behavior modification. These images not only reflected attitudes, values, and beliefs about the causes and consequences of venereal disease but also affected responses to the problem.
(Note: Most these photos link back to Retronaut; added are a few more photos and text discovered from the NIH and other sites)
A couple more ... one French, the other American from World War I
Bonus: Anti-Syphillis Poster 1940
Other references ...
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/visualculture/venereal.html
http://www.medicalbillingschool.org/blog/50-vintage-std-propaganda-posters
Sounds like a big problem back then. Say it now like that and you’ll probably be sued and/or strung up for a hate crime.
Hahahaha...thanks so much, these are great! I liked the “Booby Trap” one...:)
Heh, heh, where’s Veronika Dankeschoen? And don’t forget the general order against fraternization with them fraulein gals!
On a serious note, there were surely many women in the occupation zones who were forced into prostitution just to survive.
The caption is missing, but it's "Come on in...I used to know your daddy."
Badmovies.org has a clip from an anti-VD training film from 1942 that’s pretty interesting, too:
http://www.badmovies.org/movies/shipshame/
The clip as at the bottom of the review (site owner is touchy about hotlinking directly to the clips).
I’m sorry but the second poster with the clinched fist made me laugh out loud...!
These are awesome, thanks for sharing.
Interesting since it is well known that the DOD imported prostitutes to Hawaii to service the military men.
ping
My brother-in-law, (now deceased) said that in WWII pickup girls were known as “Victory girls”.
Great line - Great poster.
My dad was a sailor in WWII and said that at ports of call there was a barrel of condoms at the top of the gang-way for those heading out on liberty.
STDs are on the rise amongst Fla. seniors: “In Central Florida, where The Villages and other retirement communities sprawl across several counties, reported cases of syphilis and chlamydia increased 71 percent among those 55 and older in that same period. And South Florida saw a 60 percent rise in those two sexually transmitted infections among the same age group, according to the Florida Department of Health.” (Orlando Sentinel)
The ads seem to go from
“Don’t visit prostitutes”
“At least wear a condom”
“[Wife] I got infected but I got treated”
:/
And now they got posters warning to use a condom - with two guys holding hands heading upstairs. (Well - I wouldn’t put it past them).
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