Comstock Act of 1873
United States obscenity law, enacted in 1873, and amended since. / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Comstock Act of 1873 refers to a series of provisions, currently codified across title 18 of the United States Code and enacted beginning in 1873 as an extraneous rider to a postal appropriations bill, that generally criminalize the involvement of the United States Postal Service or its officers, a common carrier, or an interactive computer service, in conveying obscene or crime-inciting matter.
Long title | Act for the Suppression of Trade in, and Circulation of, Obscene Literature and Articles of Immoral Use |
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Nicknames | Comstock Act of 1873 |
Enacted by | the 43rd Congress United States Congress |
Effective | 1873 |
Codification | |
U.S.C. sections created | 18 U.S.C. § 552, 18 U.S.C. § 1461, 18 U.S.C. § 1462, 18 U.S.C. § 1463 |
Legislative history | |
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Major amendments | |
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United States Supreme Court cases | |
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The relevancy to abortion, something mentioned in the statute, albeit largely in passing, has been a point of greater contention since the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization (2022).[1] While greatly amended since initial enactment, the act is widely associated with U.S. Postal Inspector and anti-vice activist Anthony Comstock, and hence State anti-vice laws may be referred to as Comstock-style or Little Comstock Acts.[2]