Lella Secor Florence (born Lella Faye Secor; February 13, 1887 – January 14, 1966) was an American writer, journalist,

pacifist Pacifism is the opposition to war or violence. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaigner Émile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress in Glasgow in 1901. A related term is ''a ...

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

and pioneer of

birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth control only be ...

Early life

Lella Faye Secor was born in

Battle Creek, Michigan Battle Creek is a city in northwestern Calhoun County, Michigan, United States, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo River, Kalamazoo and Battle Creek River, Battle Creek rivers. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a tota ...

. In 1892 her family moved to

Ventura, California Ventura, officially named San Buenaventura (Spanish for "Saint Bonaventure"), is a city in and the county seat of Ventura County, California, United States. It is a coastal city located northwest of Los Angeles. The population was 110,763 at the ...

before moving to

Green Bay, Wisconsin Green Bay is a city in Brown County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located at the head of Green Bay (Lake Michigan), Green Bay (known locally as "the bay of Green Bay"), a sub-basin of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the F ...

and finally, in 1898, returning to Battle Creek. Her father abandoned the family, and her mother ran a boarding house.

Journalism career and peace activist

In 1906 she became a journalist in Battle Creek and then in a variety of towns in

Washington state Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

. She sailed on the Henry Ford Peace Ship in 1915 as a reporter. She co-founded two pacifist organisations that aimed to keep the United States out of

World War One World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in Europe and th ...

: the American Neutral Conference Committee and the

Emergency Peace Federation The People's Council of America for Democracy and the Terms of Peace, commonly known as the "People's Council," was an American pacifist political organization established in New York City in May 1917. Organized in opposition to the decision of the ...

Personal life

In 1917 Secor married the economist

Philip Sargant Florence Philip Sargant Florence (25 June 1890 – 29 January 1982) was an American economist who spent most of his life in the United Kingdom. Life His wife Lella Secor Florence and their children Born in Nutley, New Jersey in the United States, he wa ...

. They had two children, both sons.

Feminist activist

In 1921, Secor moved to

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, England with her husband after he began working at

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. She joined the Women's International League. In Cambridge she became actively involved in campaigning for

. She set up the first birth control clinic in Cambridge in 1925 and was one of the earliest women members of the Cambridge Labour Party. On one occasion, she attended a lecture given by a famous anti-feminist lecturer and was surprised to see women audience members segregated at the side of the hall. She sat in the middle of the hall to protest this.

Ivor Montagu Ivor Goldsmid Samuel Montagu (23 April 1904, in Kensington, London – 5 November 1984, in Watford) was an English filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, film critic, writer, table tennis player, and Communist activist and spy in the 1930s. He help ...

wrote of Secor in his autobiography that she was "a freckled American redhead who had been a spirited battler against the violence with which the U.S. authorities assailed pacifist protest.' For a period she lived away from her husband in a flat in Paris. In 1929, Philip was appointed to the

chair A chair is a type of seat, typically designed for one person and consisting of one or more legs, a flat or slightly angled seat and a back-rest. It may be made of wood, metal, or synthetic materials, and may be padded or upholstered in vario ...

in commerce at the

University of Birmingham The University of Birmingham (informally Birmingham University) is a Public university, public research university in Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Queen's College, Birmingham (founded in 1825 as ...

and the couple moved to the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

district of

Selly Park Selly Park is a residential suburban district in south-west Birmingham, England. The suburb of Selly Park is located between the Bristol Road ( A38) and the Pershore Road ( A441). Toponymy Selly Park is named after the parkland that was origin ...

, where they bought a large house called '' Highfield''. In 1930 she published ''Birth Control on Trial''. Their house ''Highfield'' became a focal point for the intellectual life of Birmingham in the 1930s – the poet

Louis MacNeice Frederick Louis MacNeice (12 September 1907 – 3 September 1963) was an Irish poet, playwright and producer for the BBC. Known for its exploration of introspection, empiricism, and belonging, his poetic work is now ranked among the twentieth ...

lived in the converted coachman's quarters and the writer

Walter Allen Walter Ernest Allen (23 February 1911 – 28 February 1995) was an English literary critic and novelist and one of the Birmingham Group of authors. He is best known for his classic study ''The English Novel: a Short Critical History'' (1951). ...

described how "Most English Left-Wing intellectuals and American intellectuals visiting Britain must have passed through Highfield between 1930 and 1950". Lella remained committed to

disarmament Disarmament is the act of reducing, limiting, or abolishing Weapon, weapons. Disarmament generally refers to a country's military or specific type of weaponry. Disarmament is often taken to mean total elimination of weapons of mass destruction, ...

, birth control and

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and Entitlement (fair division), entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st c ...

and continued to write and campaign. She died of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

following a stroke in 1966.

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Florence, Lella Secor 1887 births 1966 deaths American birth control activists American newspaper reporters and correspondents American pacifists American women journalists American feminists Place of death missing American expatriates in England