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Thirdly, women were
seeking new professional roles in society which could only be accomplished
by limiting family size. Fourthly, the 20th century saw a change in sexual
morality within which premarital sex was more tolerated, thus making
effective birth control a necessity. Fifthly was the continued concern over
differential fertility spurred on by the new interest in eugenics, or how to
breed a truer American society. Even President Teddy Roosevelt tried to
encourage native-born White Protestant American women to improve the
nation's stock, as he stated: (quote, Fryer, p. l99). Finally, within the
medical profession some doctors saw the need to develop an effective form of
birth control and to monopolize this area of health care, least women fall
victim to quacks and irregular medical sects who still performed abortions. |