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Description area
Dates of existence
History
In 1931 Dr Charles Killick Millard, Medical Officer of Health for Leicester gave a presidential address to the Society of Medical Officers of Health, on voluntary euthanasia. His speech was printed in pamphlet form with an introduction by Sir William Arbuthnot Lane. Millard advocated the passing of an Act of Parliament to legalise euthanasia on a voluntary basis for the terminally ill, and included the draft of a bill with his paper.
In 1935 the Voluntary Euthanasia Legalisation Society was founded in Leicester with C J Bond as Chairman, Charles Killick Millard as Honorary Secretary and Lord Moynihan as President and in 1936 the first Voluntary Euthanasia (Legalisation) Bill was introduced into Parliament.
In 1941 the membership of the Society was over 1000 but the activities of the Society were curtailed by the War. Also to counteract the bad name given to euthanasia by Hitler's policies, the Society found it necessary to issue a statement pointing out that they only advocated euthanasia on a strictly voluntary basis for the already dying.
In 1949 the Society petitioned the United Nations to include the right to voluntary euthanasia in the Declaration of Human Rights.
The Society became known as EXIT but reverted to the Voluntary Euthanasia Society and continued to campaign for the right of individuals to a death with dignity and to propagate this controversial subject. In 2006 the Society changed its name to Dignity in Dying.