In 1882, Congress passed a law that criminalized polygamy. Emmeline Wells, a staunch defender of plural marriage, gave this speech in 1883. In it, she addresses the popular opinion that polygamy is an act that keeps ignorant Mormon women "in bondage." She provides a counter argument, describing how Mormon women consider their choices carefully, and that those who do agree to a polygamous marriage "are like other good, pure, virtuous women, industrially, morally and intellectually."