Wartime propaganda of the ’30s and ’40s didn’t stop at the physical enemy on the other side of the trenches. Guilt and scare tactics were common in the battle against the spread of sexually transmitted diseases within the American public at large and in the military in particular.

Soldiers were the primary targets of posters like the ones below, which appealed to patriotism, family, morality, manly pride and outright fear to get enlisted men to take steps to avoid venereal disease (VD) — including throwing out dubious “facts” like “98% of all procurable women have venereal disease” that tried to make sexual intercourse with women look as scary as possible. The message is frightening, but the posters are colorful, charismatic and downright charming.



Click any of the posters to view larger versions

