The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-08-31
MOVIE CENSORSHIP
 BILL DEFENDED BY MRS. A. I. S|MONS
Chairman of WOman's Com mittee That Promoted the Bill Gives Her Views on
 Proposed Legislation

We need a board of censorship for motion pictures for the same reason we need a board of hsalth,'' said Mrs. A. from the council of Womans clubs ap- pointed to promote the passage of bill iii the state legislature to require the censoring of all motion pictures shown in Alabama. Other members of the committee which caused the bill now before the legislature to be drawn up are Mrs. DuPont Thompson. Mrs. Vas sar Allen, Mrs. T. P. Byrnes and Mrs. Stirling Foster.
 Every effort is being made, it was stated by Mrs. Simons. to have the bill passed. "The people who are behind this movement she said yesterday after room, and who have given it all the aid publicly and privately. within their power, are those who, in official or bus mess capacity have been thrown in contact with the very boys and girls who frequent the movies the most" Mrs. Simons declared that those who have supported the movement realize the great educational value and influ- ence of motion pictures and that they are seeking to eliminate everything in motion pictures that would have bad influence on the people, and especially on the children.
 "We do not want to suppress the nov ies," she declared. We believe that Cue censoring of pictures will mean better business for the industry. It certainly would not mean that the business would be crushed as, has been claimed.
 'It is said that there are now enough movie laws. If this is true they are not enforced. It is a matter of everybody s business being nobody's business and the present laws are neglected.
 "The censoring that is now done on the films shown in this state is done by representatives of those interested in the business, and naturally they are par tial to the producers with the result that many pictures that are not clean and wholesome and that are injurious are shown in this state. .As for the appoint ment of the censors by the governor, thus placing politics in the matter, it would do so. no more than It does in the many other offices that are filled in the same way, and we have no req son to say that those appointed by the governor would not be competent or honest.
 We must have some kind of censor ship and it is coming If we do not get it in this legislature, we will get it lat CT, and we will immediately undertake to have the city take action on having pictures censored in Birmingham. We hope the present legislators will honor themselves by passing this bill"
 Mrs Simons declared that almost ev- cry child brought to the Juvenile court has an unusual desire for "the movies" and that they indicate that they have been greatly impressed with some things seen in pictures.
 ..At the boys industrial school there are 50 boys who were sent there for cor rection because of something they had done that had been suggested to them bv motion pictures" Mrs. Sinans said. ITO illustrate how suggestive movie pictures can be, do you know where the
 idea of the girls boxing their hair on the side came from? They got the idea from the screen where they saw Irene Castles hair fixed that way.
 Tn Pennsylvania, where a law very ainsilar to the one proposed for Alabama