United States Army. Social Hygiene Division | Images from the History of Medicine
During the First World War, a tension developed between “social hygiene” reformers, who condemned illicit sexual behavior and emphasized education as the key to fighting venereal diseases, and more pragmatic medical officers who promoted prophylactic stations for the treatment of venereal diseases on military bases. This 1918 poster illustrates a common message promoted by social hygienists, who worked vigorously to close down red-light districts in American cities and to educate soldiers about refraining from sexual activity.