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Why Is The Pill Important To The Feminist Movement?

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The introduction of the birth control pill in 1960 was a pivotal moment in American society, and its impact is still being felt today. In the book American + the Pill, author Elaine Tyler May recounts the history, development, and importance of the pill and how it transformed the social and political landscape of the United States in the mid-twentieth century. This essay will explore the pill’s importance in American society, as it enabled women to take control of their reproductive lives and transformed sexual politics. It will also explore the pill’s importance in the feminist movement, as it became a symbol of women's liberation and a catalyst for social and political change. The pill was first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration …show more content…

In the 1960s and 1970s, women’s rights were at the forefront of the political and cultural landscape in the United States. The pill gave women the opportunity to challenge the law and religious authority and take control of their bodies. While the pill was met with resistance by many states and religious organizations, this did not stop women from doing what they felt was necessary for their lives. According to May, “Initially, many American women defied religious or governmental authority simply by taking the pill. The Catholic Church banned the use of contraceptives, yet many Catholics took the pill anyway… the laws did not prevent women who wanted the pill from getting it,” (pg. 118). The pill played a large factor in increasing the autonomy of women, which was a crucial component of the feminist movement, as it challenged patriarchal norms and …show more content…

As May states, “The pill became a vehicle for new laws, policies, and behaviors that altered the relationship between institutional authorities and individuals,” (pg. 119). The approval of the pill gave women a voice that was not heard before. Within years of the passage, women became more adamant about getting answers on the components of the pill that were entering their bodies and how it would affect them. Years after the birth control pill’s approval, women pushed doctors and drug companies to improve the pill and its effectiveness. According to May, however, “In spite of improvements in dosage and packaging, questions persisted about the pill’s safety, and feminists kept up the pressure,” (pg. 133). As a result of the controversies over the pill, many lawsuits were made, forcing experts to listen to the voices and concerns of women and create improvements of the pill and contraceptive methods, much like we see

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May credited Margaret Sanger and fellow women's rights proponent and philanthropist Katherine McCormick for driving, and funding, the push for an oral contraceptive, with the original intent to give women control of fertility. However, the majority of developers and advocates endorsed the birth control pill to solve "the problems of the world," specifically rising population, and particularly among lower socio-economic groups and in developing countries." Advocates feared widespread poverty in developing countries, poverty resulting from communism, and overpopulation in the United States due to the baby boom.

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The names jointly associated with the pills development are three males— Carl Djerassi, Gregory Pincus and John Rock. The two females who played a central role in its development, Katharine McCormick and Margaret Sanger, are often not associated. Also the hundreds of women who volunteered to participate in the pill’s risky clinical trials are not associated with its development, May depicts the reason for failure of recognition by shedding light to the darkness of the pill. She dedicates several pages to specifying the moral and physical risks posed by the pill. May provides supportive information about numerous research trials all over the world (including the U.S.), and the stories of countless women whose suffrage heavily contributed to the development of the pill and the approval for

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Taylor Hurst Kaiser AP Lang 11 November 2015 Analysis of Margaret Sanger’s Speech on Birth Control Margaret Sanger, an American birth control activist, made an announcement titled “The Children’s Era,’ at the first national birth-control conference in March of 1925. In this speech, Sanger attempts to influence her ideas and beliefs on the importance of birth control and contraceptives to the health of society’s women. She also vividly explains how controlled childbearing would apply to children who would eventually be born.

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Trying to prevent neglected children and back-alley abortions, Margaret Sanger gave the moving speech, “The Children’s Era,” in 1925 to spread information on the benefits and need for birth control and women's rights. Margaret Sanger--activist, educator, writer, and nurse--opened the first birth control clinic in the United States and established organizations that evolved into the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. During most of the 1900’s, birth control and abortions were illegal in the United States, causing women to give birth unwillingly to a child they must be fully responsible for. This caused illness and possible death for women attempting self-induced abortion. Sanger uses literary devices such as repetition and analogies

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The Women’s Liberation group made a statement saying, “In spite of the fact that it is women who are taking the pill and taking the risks, it was legislators, the doctors, and the drug company’s representatives, all men of course, who were testifying and dissecting women as if they were no more important than the laboratory animals they work with every day (Vargas).” These men made the decision to test on these women, and they still made the decisions concerning the repercussions of the study as well. The demeaning manor in which this study was discussed is no foreign concept for women throughout history. For many years, men have held power over many things, especially concerning women of color and their health.

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The U.S. has the highest rate of teen pregnancy in the world. Nearly half of the fifty states require that teens obtain parental consent for contraceptive use. Birth control has been utilized since 3000 BC; however, in 1973 congress passed a law, the Comstock Act, which prohibited the advertisement, use, or distribution of any type of contraceptive. This law was imposed upon the American public until 1960, when the first hormonal prophylactic was approved by the FDA. Nonetheless, it wasn’t until 1972 that contraceptives were sanctioned by Congress for all citizens.

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Currently, our nation has many debatable issues regarding women. These range anywhere from equal pay to reproductive health. One issue that is talked about quite often is birth control. Numerous people, including some government officials, assume that birth control pills only serve one purpose, which is to prevent a woman from getting pregnant. Based on this assumption, individuals conclude that women who are using birth control take it solely for that intended purpose; however, this is not always the case, as birth control has a multitude of uses other than just preventing unwanted pregnancies.

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This is the equivalence to the women’s 1960s; there is a vast different in views and attitudes when comparing both pills. When the male contraceptive was first announced in the market, society has viewed the launch of the birth control differently than when the female pill launched in the 60’s. The female pill has been seen as a women’s rights issue, a “special interest group” issue, an identity politics issue, a liberal issue. Women have, and are currently, been seen as promiscuous and are slut shamed for making this decision. On the other hand, male birth control is not, because male issues are not often labeled “special interest group” issues.

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With government-sponsored healthcare programs constantly changing, the contraceptive policies within the programs are typically modified as well. Recently, President Donald Trump has repealed the Obama-era mandate that employer-provided health insurance must include contraceptive options at no additional cost to female employees. The policy change in itself is very controversial because it is seen as the government playing a role in women’s health and influencing the availability of affordable contraceptives that many women use (Guttmacher Institute, 2017). As always, there are compelling arguments on both sides of the fight. President Trump’s change to the Affordable Care Act’s policy for contraceptives and birth control was strictly for religious

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