Celebrate "The Pill"
Yes, Virginia, there was a time when it was illegal to obtain birth control in this country -- and it was not so long ago. Forty years ago this week, the US Supreme Court struck down the Connecticut law that made it illegal for married couples to obtain birth control. And that was five years after the FDA had approved "the pill."Birth control has only been legal in this country for 40 years!
Chew on that for a minute.
But before you start settling on your laurels, Katha Pollitt reminds us that there is still a double standard for women when it comes to sexuality (where's OUR Viagra?).
Reproductive choice for women and families. Now, that's a reason to celebrate!
posted by Holly G @ 1:14 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Yeah, but I'm betting that we need something like the time clock from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists to indicate how close we are to rolling things back to 1965 (or earlier). Rehnquist is only getting older and frailer, and George W. has three more years to go. As soon as they get his other judges through, he's going to move onto the big court.
As for Viagra... what, you want to go blind, too?
Mike F
I hate the idea that the same pharmacist who refuses to sell the so-called abortion pill would have no problem dispensing a drug which might make the pill necessary in the first place. The problem goes deeper than pharamacists, however.
I was recently in a doctor's office here in our conservative little town, and the MD had plastered his office with testimonials from people who had given up any type of family planning except that which is prescribed by the Catholic church. Needless to say, this doctor also has six children. As a result of his faith, this doctor refuses to prescribe any type of birth control for his patients.
Now what happens when a doctor like this is the only doctor in a small rural town? In addition to a lack of access to abortion facilities, the women in this area would even be denied access to materials which would prevent pregnancy in the first place. In order to fully celebrate the birthday of the birth control pill, we need to make an effort to ensure that everyone has access to this modern miracle.
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