Polite letters
Whilst at school, I was a member of an Amnesty International group. Back then, the focus of A.I. was on “prisoners of conscience”—people persecuted, imprisoned and worse for their political or religious … Continue reading
Babies in the Right Place
“Babies in the Right Place” was the catch cry of the Society for Constructive Birth Control (C.B.C.), but what did it actually mean? Three artifacts provide the best explanation in … Continue reading
Secret admirers
It is interesting to note that some contemporary writers about Marie Stopes sometimes signal that they are disturbed by her eugenic beliefs. For example: Tom Nash wrote of her “troubling interest in eugenics” (The … Continue reading
“Roman Catholic Doctor”
Biographies of Marie Stopes deal with Halliday Sutherland in remarkably similar ways. They tell you three essential facts: They tell you that he was a “Roman Catholic doctor”; that he heard Professor Anne McIlroy speak … Continue reading
“The Trial of Marie Stopes”
Sunday, February 21, 2016 marked the 93rd Anniversary of the opening of the Stopes v. Sutherland trial in the High Court of Justice on 21st February 1923 (the “Birth Control Libel Trial”). There were … Continue reading
The Test
On receiving a writ for libel from Marie Stopes in May 1922, perhaps the biggest challenge for Halliday Sutherland was financial. The process of defending the action was potentially ruinous, … Continue reading
“Norman Haire” by Diana Wyndham
In Norman Haire and the Study of Sex, Dr. Diana Wyndham asserted, falsely in my opinion, that Dr Halliday Sutherland held “Nazi views” and “advocated the death penalty for contraceptive manufacturers”. … Continue reading
mediadiversified.org article
I read an interesting article on the site Media Diversified. It’s called Exhibition review: The white washing of Marie Stopes’ eugenicist beliefs by Dana Khalil Ahmad. As the title suggests, it was a reflection … Continue reading
Stopes v. Sutherland in a single object
This object was at the centre of the so-called Birth Control Libel Trial between Marie Stopes and Halliday Sutherland of 1923: The rubber cervical cap was supplied at cost, and fitted free of … Continue reading
Halliday Sutherland relevant today
The curator of this site, Mark Sutherland, tells how it came about: “I never met Halliday Sutherland. He died six months before I was born. Growing up, I became increasingly … Continue reading
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