34. Law Enforcement #2: Alaska P. Davidson & Kate Warne - a podcast by Pink Collar Pod
from 2020-12-03T09:00
***Disclaimer*** Our audio for this episode was a little messed up! Luckily, we still had all of Nathalie's case, we were just missing some of Rachel's commentary at the end of the episode. Do not fear, you still get two full cases!!
This week, we're taking a break from the murders and horrific crimes, and instead, we're talking about two women who played a vital role in law enforcement. Rachel tells the story of Alaska P. Davidson, the first female FBI agent. Alaska was hired to help enforce the Mann Act, aka the White-Slave Traffic Act. Although this law was intended to make it illegal to transport women across state lines for the purpose of sex work, it was often used against people of color and sex workers. Rachel goes into detail about how this act played a role in the arrest of the famous African-American boxer, Jack Johnson, and his wife, Lucile Cameron. Nathalie then tells the story of Kate Warne, the first female detective. Kate walked into the Pinkerton Detective Agency after she saw an ad in the local newspaper. It was assumed that Kate might be applying for a clerical role, but Kate made a case for why she would make a great detective. She argued that traits that were seen as more feminine could be useful investigations. She might be able to get information out of the wives and girlfriends of suspected criminals. Women also paid great attention to detail and were very good observers. Kate proved herself to be an excellent detective after aiding in the case of Adams Express Company embezzlement and also helped investigate and thwart an assassination attempt on president-elect, Abraham Lincoln.
Rachel's Sources
https://www.britannica.com/event/Teapot-Dome-Scandal
https://time.com/5290570/jack-johnson-trump-pardon/
https://www.fbi.gov/history/field-office-histories/philadelphia
https://www.pbs.org/kenburns/unforgivable-blackness/mann-act
Nathalie's Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Warne
https://pinkerton.com/our-insights/blog/unsung-heroes-first-female-detective-kate-warne/
https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/606901/kate-warne-first-female-detective
https://history.howstuffworks.com/historical-figures/kate-warne.htm
https://blogs.loc.gov/loc/2015/03/celebrating-womens-history-americas-first-female-p-i/
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