Mann Act

Mann Act

Other short titles	White-Slave Traffic Act of 1910
Long title	An Act to further regulate interstate and foreign commerce by prohibiting the transportation therein for immoral purposes of women and girls, and for other purposes.
Nicknames	White-Slave Traffic Act
Enacted by	the 61st United States Congress
Effective	June 25, 1910
Citations
Public law	Pub. L.Tooltip Public Law (United States) 61–277
Statutes at Large	36 Stat. 825a
Codification
Titles amended	8 U.S.C.: Aliens and Nationality 18 U.S.C.: Crimes and Criminal Procedure
U.S.C. sections created	8 U.S.C. ch. 13, subch. I § 1557 18 U.S.C. ch. 117 §§ 2421–2424
Legislative history
Introduced in the House as H.R. 12315 by James Robert Mann (R–IL) on December 21, 1909 Signed into law by President William Howard Taft on June 25, 1910

The Mann Act, previously called the White-Slave Traffic Act of 1910, is a United States federal law, passed June 25, 1910 (ch. 395, 36 Stat. 825; codified as amended at 18 U.S.C. §§ 2421–2424). It is named after Congressman James Robert Mann of Illinois.

In its original form, the act made it a felony to engage in interstate or foreign commerce transport of "any woman or girl for the purpose of prostitution or debauchery, or for any other immoral purpose". Its primary stated intent was to address prostitution, immorality, and human trafficking, particularly where trafficking was for the purposes of prostitution. It was one of several acts of protective legislation aimed at moral reform during the Progressive Era. In practice, its ambiguous language about "immorality" resulted in it being used to criminalize even consensual sexual behavior between adults.^[1] It was amended by Congress in 1978 and again in 1986 to limit its application to transport for the purpose of prostitution or other illegal sexual acts.^[2]