Editing Alice Paul (section)

==== Civil disobedience and hunger strikes ====
Whilst associated with the Women's Social and Political Union, Paul was arrested a total of seven times and imprisoned three times.<ref name="Dodd">{{cite journal|last=Dodd|first=Lynda G.|year=2008|title=Parades, pickets, and prison: Alice Paul and the virtues of unruly constitutional citizenship|journal=Journal of Law & Politics|volume=24|issue=4|pages=339–443|ssrn=2226351}}</ref> It was during her time in prison that she learned the tactics of [[civil disobedience]] from Emmeline Pankhurst. Chief among these tactics was demanding to be treated as a [[political prisoner]] upon arrest. This not only sent a message about the legitimacy of the suffragists to the public but also had the potential to provide tangible benefits. In many European countries, including England, political prisoners were given a special status: "[T]hey were not searched upon arrest, not housed with the rest of the prisoner population, not required to wear prison garb, and not force-fed if they engaged in hunger strikes."<ref name=":0" /> Though arrested suffragists often were not afforded the status of political prisoners, this form of civil disobedience provided much press for the WSPU. For example, during a London arrest (after being denied political prisoner status), Paul refused to put on prisoner's clothing. After the prison matrons could not undress her forcibly, they requested assistance from male guards. This act, considered shockingly improper by [[Victorian era]] standards, provided extensive press coverage for the suffrage movement.<ref name=":0" />

Another popular civil disobedience tactic used by the suffragists was [[hunger striking]]. The first WSPU-related hunger strike was conducted by sculptor [[Marion Wallace Dunlop]] in June 1909. By that fall, it was being widely used by WSPU members because of its effectiveness in publicizing their mistreatment and gaining quick release from prison wardens. Refusing food worked in securing an early release for Paul during her first two arrests. However, during her third prison stint, the warden ordered twice daily force-feeding to keep Paul strong enough to finish her month-long sentence.<ref name=":0" />

Though the prisons staunchly maintained that the force-feeding of prisoners was for their own benefit, Paul and other women described the process as torturous. Paul had developed severe [[gastritis]] at the end of her month in prison. She was carried out of prison and immediately tended to by a doctor. However, after this event, her health was permanently scarred; she often developed colds and flu, which would sometimes require hospitalization.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|title=Alice Paul: Equality for Women|last=Lunardini|first=Christine|publisher=Westview Press|year=2012|isbn=978-0813347615}}</ref>

Paul had been given a [[Hunger Strike Medal]] 'for Valour' by WSPU.