Towards the end of the nineteenth century, a man named Anthony Comstock emerged into the foreground of the political scene. He was a religiously motivated man who sought to remove "vices". Some of the vices he launched a personal war against were initially tobacco, alcohol, gambling and atheism. Comstock worked his way up the political ladder by collaborating with the newly-formed Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) and launched a legal crusade against contraceptives and information regarding sexuality. Eventually pulling members of Congress into his anti-vice campaign, in 1873, the Comstock Law was created. Described as an "Act of the Suppression of Trade in, and Circulation of, Obscene Literature and Articles of Immoral Use", the Comstock Law expanded upon earlier legislation which included a long list of "obscenities" that were to be banned in the United States. Contraceptives and information on pregnancy prevention made the top of the list. Many state governments soon followed suit and enacted legislation reinforcing the act. After the passing of the Comstock Law, figures like Margaret Sanger came. Sanger devoted her life to providing education and access to contraceptives. She established the American Birth Control League which would later be known as the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. Although she may have had somewhat of a questionable background, dabbling in eugenics and marxism, she helped educate a multitude of women during a time when they were otherwise neglected and living under the fear of prosecution if found to be seeking such information. The entirety of Comstock Law would not be overturned until 1965 with the Supreme Court case Griswold v. Connecticut. While the Comstock Law had been overturned, contraceptives were only permitted for use by married couples. It was not until the 1972 Supreme Court case Einstein v. Baird, only 44 years ago, that contraceptives were made legal for all Americans. 

Even before the banning of such "obscenities", sex education information often had little basis in fact. During the 1830s, many of them discussed religion and nutrition while emphasizing the perils of masturbation. Most information at this time was only presented to young men. Eventually the National Education Association would call for sex education to be introduced in schools but districts which attempted to implement the suggestion were quickly quashed. The conversation became quiet for several decades until the rampant spread of sexually transmitted infections during World War I. Around this time, most people agreed that providing education at a younger age would be beneficial in preventing such things. Beginning with education for soldiers, schools soon followed. From the 1920s through the 1950s, sex education rapidly expanded and became a part of the curriculum, although the facuality of the information being provided was questionable. The largest resistance against sex education began in the 1960s and 1970s during the sexual revolution when some claimed the mere discussion of sex led to temptation, promiscuity, venereal disease and homosexuality. While the debate would rage on for several years, becoming a political issue, the HIV/AIDS pandemics strengthened the position of sex educators and by the 1990s, most local governments had introduced policy requiring education on the prevention of HIV/AIDS. Moving forward, some schools would develop "abstinence education" while others developed "comprehensive education". While a third of the country still continues to use abstinence education, many communities are turning towards comprehensive education.