As of April 10, former presidential hopeful Rick Santorum formally withdrew as a candidate for the Republican Party ticket. If you are not already aware of reasons to celebrate, consider his similarity to a man named Anthony Comstock. They both have revered Victorian morality and are known for a complete disregard for women’s rights.
To put the ridiculousness of the situation into perspective, Santorum is comparable to a man who lived in the times preceding women’s suffrage. Unfortunately, they both give religious individuals a bad name by attempting to force a certain ideology on everyone else.
Comstock was a direct opponent to feminists like Margaret Sanger, nurse and birth control activist, and Victoria Woodhull, the first female presidential candidate and a leader of the women’s suffrage movement. However, contraception was a new idea in the late 19th century, which ruffled the feathers of the devoutly religious.
Santorum has no reason to oppose birth control 200 years after its inception, especially when he is also vehemently against abortion.
“I believe that any doctor who performs an abortion…should be criminally charged for doing so,” Santorum said in a 2011 interview with Meet the Press.
It is a little difficult to ascertain which man is more out-of-touch with their reality between Santorum and Comstock, considering the latter referred to himself as “a weeder in God’s garden,” according to the 1995 novel “Weeder in the Garden of the Lord” by Anna Bates.
Both men pointedly ignore the Constitution in their arguments, which clearly calls for America to assign to no certain religion. Thankfully, Santorum holds much less power with influencing any major decisions (particularly due to the fact he is no longer a candidate for the presidency).
In a 2006 interview on a Comcast program, later posted to YouTube, Santorum said, “I… have voted for contraception, although I don’t think it works. I think it’s harmful to women. I think it’s harmful to our society to have a society that says that sex outside of marriage is something that should be encouraged or tolerated … particularly among the young.”
What is the reason behind Santorum opposing abortion or contraception? His religious beliefs, of course! Too bad personal beliefs have no place in deciding legislation for an entire nation – which might have played a role in his recent decision.
One must wonder why anyone would have supported a man like Santorum, who wishes to backpedal in the progression of equal rights. At least Comstock opposed change when it first cropped up, rather than centuries after people started considering it.
However, the actions of Comstock are not entirely excusable. The same year he organized the NYSSV, he also managed to persuade Congress in passing the Comstock Law.
This legislation made it illegal to transport or deliver “obscene, lewd, or lascivious” materials – which may not sound too bad, until one finds this included the selling of birth control methods and even anatomy textbooks.
Comstock made it possible to stop the United States Postal Service from delivering relevant materials to medical students due to his belief that the human body, even in a neutral depiction for learning purposes, was “obscene.” Like Santorum, he used his religious beliefs as a weapon against those who had more progressive ways of thinking and living.
How long will it take for medical students to be banned from looking at the naked human body in fear that they will be “corrupted?” The similarities between Santorum and Comstock make me believe reincarnation could be real — a statement I’m sure would outrage either individual.
Although Santorum is no longer a presidential candidate, the spirit of Comstock and his preference for censorship live on through Santorum’s
political party.
