A New Conscience and an Ancient Evil

Jane Addams (1860-1935), American feminist activist and thinker, allows us to revisit an early feminist perspective. Her intellectual work as a writer and pragmatist philosopher was very influential for suffrage in the United States and the creation of laws that sought to improve the working conditions of women and populations of African descent. She also co-founded the first social housing in the United States that supported the European immigrant population, known as the Hull-House. In addition to being the first woman at Yale University to receive an honorary Master of Arts degree, she was also the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931. The present text is the first chapter of her book entitled A New Conscience and an Ancient Evil, which deals with sex work and the arduous road to its abolition. Jane Addams is relevant today because she can add to the voices shaping the dialogue on prostitution.