Birth Control has always been a topic of controversy in America, generating large opposition and actions to regulate it. The regulation of any form of birth control was made final with the Comstock Act being passed in 1873 that was a, “federal law that made it a crime to sell or distribute materials that could be used for contraception or abortion”. This act created by and enacted by Anthony Comstock, caused a long and troubling path for feminists attempting to break the patriarchal society and gain the freedom to control their own bodies and choices. The virdict was supported throughout the years and by the 1950s many opinions of religious people, political persons, and most men who accepted traditional gender roles continued on the path of …show more content…
Overall, birth control in the 1950s faced a surplus of regulations and opposition due to gender roles in the patriarchal society that was present at the time. Religion in the 1950s was a very important aspect to many citizens living in America. The amount that religion affected the population was shown by the increase of religious groups at the time, it was stated in “The 1940s: Religion: Overview.” from American Decades, “..by 1950 more than 55 percent were members of religious groups, a figure that would increase to 69 percent by the end of the 1950s.” However, this number had not been the same throughout 20th century America. The amount of people in America that had been going to worship their religious figures during the Great Depression was a very small percentage of Americans. The number only started to increase after World War II came to a closing and brought major economic prosperity to America. This burst of church growth in America during the time …show more content…
They were unfit of any responsibility other than being a wife and mother to their children due to the traditional gender roles present in the patriarchal society of the time. “Gender Roles and Relations” from Encyclopedia of American Social History, stated that “...Gender roles, assume that men and women should, even must act differently, according to rules appropriate to their gender alone”. These gender roles from the 20th century separated men from women on the basis of superiority and abilities. Men had the idea that they were to control their families by being the head of their house, that they were to take care of all the so called “manly” duties, and lastly that they were to control their wives as well. Men believed they had the ability to control what a woman did to her body, and in that sense, when it came down to the birth control debate, men chose to further the acceptance of the idea of another item being able to control a woman. The religious aspect, along with the male superiority aspect attributed to this feeling of most men during the
Additionally, compulsory sterilization efforts could be implemented. become glorified in eugenics programs. Davis asserts that the birth control proponents within the feminist movement from the very beginning determined that it was the moral. obligation of black and other minority women restrict the size of their inferrior families.
When legally introduced to society in 1960, the Pill stirred up a long period of controversy. The availability of the Pill had great impact on women’s health, social life, laws, religion, family, relationships, morality and sexuality. Initially conceived to be highly effective and safe, the Pill left many women with side effects – few which led to several fatalities. Before the Pill was created, many women postponed sex due to the social norm and fear of becoming pregnant before marriage. Families grew large and it was typical for a woman to have multiple children caused by the lack of birth control. Due to regulations, such as the Comstock laws, many people supported the prohibition of the Pill and other family planning practices. However, many women believed in the right to control their own body when it came to procreation. Despite the controversies, the Pill left lasting impacts, such as by opening society to the sexual revolution and...
Butler, J., Balmer, R., & Wacker, G. (2008). Religion in American Life : A Short History. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Modern birth control pills were approved by the FDA in the 1960s. This was heralded
The following year the ban on contraceptives was called off and doctors could now legally prescribe birth control. (499) But this didn't mean that women were now running to get a prescription form of birth control, they still preferred other methods. Many women could not afford prescriptions or did not live close enough to a clinic. Convenience, affordability, and discreetness was still what women looked for when choosing a form of birth control. New laws in 1938 that governed medical devices had little impact on commercially sold birth control products because they were still being sold as vaginal cleansers. Women came to depend on “feminine hygiene” products more than any other method of birth control even well after the pill was developed in
Although birth control has been practiced since ancient times, the first organized efforts developed during the 19th century as population increased dramatically because of improved medical care, nutrition, and sanitation. However, birth control met with resistance. In 1873 the United States Congress enacted the Comstock Law, which prohibited the distribution of birth-control devices and information.
The Birth Control Movement was one of many social reforms that emerged during the Progressive Era. This movement peaked during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. This movement pushed for parents to have the ability to manage the size of their families and have the ability prevent unwanted pregnancies. This movement was led by a number of strong female activists, the most essential advocate being nurse Margaret Sanger. As the Birth Control Movement began, Sanger primarily focused on decriminalizing birth control education and devices. She fought laws such as The 1873 Comstock Law, which restricted the dissemination of birth control information and devices by placing them in the same category as pornography. In response to this act Sanger started a reproductive rights journal called The Woman Rebel in 1914, and opened the first birth control clinic in 1916. After discovering the possibility of an oral contraceptive, Sanger asked biologist Gregory Pincus in 1950 to lead the development of a hormonally based birth control pill.
The Comstock Act of 1873 prohibited the mailing and trade of “obscene, lewd, and/or lascivious” materials. In other words, things like contraceptive materials and even any information pertaining the topic was illegal. The 1873 Comstock Act reflected patriarchy and sexism by maintaining women suppressed into the lifestyle of just bearing children and allowing man to have more authority over a woman’s body. Women during this time had to face going through same issues again of dangerous pregnancies and the denial of their reproductive rights.
The aspect of sex and the use of birth control were touchy issues in the early 20th century. Sex was only for married couples that wanted to have children. The idea of sex before marriage was crazy. Because of all the beliefs about sex being only for procreation and not for pleasure birth control was not needed. There was one major event and one key person who are responsible for making the use of birth control acceptable in America. The major event being World War I. In World War I there was a lot of usage of whore houses by the French and English soldiers. A major problem with the French and English governments allowing men to go to the whorehouses was that there was rapid spread of VD. A soldier that is suffering from herpes, syphilis, or gonorrhea doesn’t fight too well. President Wilson was very concerned about the American soldiers getting sick and not able to fight. He also wanted to stop the spread of VD Wilson decided that during boot camp the soldiers would be taught about VD’s, and the effect of them. The recruits had to take a sexual education class. In the class the men were shown pictures and movies that showed what various vaginal diseases looked like, and what they would do to a mans sex organs. This was an effective in stopping the American soldiers from going to the French whorehouses. Another program the U.S. Government instituted to stop the spread of VD was to give out condoms to the soldiers.
Men were in control of almost everything a woman did. Women were seen to be second best compared to men, therefore, they were treated as such. Osmond and Thorne (1993) stated that “historically male experts have controlled women’s bodies, denying them the access to birth control and abortion; the large males dominated medical field established alienation conditions for childbearing. Most of the major professions were occupied by men” (p. 613). Feminist leaders also challenged the structural functionalism theory’s concept of the nuclear families. Feminists believe that following the traditional way of having a family would continue to lead to their oppression. Smith and Hamon (2012) stated “limiting families to the traditional nuclear definition restricts women’s roles to a subordinate position and discounts the experiences of women in diverse family forms” (p. 297). Feminists believed that men and women could perform just as well as men on tasks within society, therefore they felt that there should be no division or superior/inferior rank among
The Roaring Twenties were known as a time of economic boom, pop culture and social developments. This was a time when women began to break norms, they acted rebelliously such as wearing releveling clothing, smoking, and drinking. These women were known as “flappers” who wanted to change their roles in the 1920’s. Birth control activist, Margaret Sanger sought to change the world where women had access to a low cost, effective contraception pill. In “The Morality of Birth Control” Sanger battled opponents who claimed that contraception would cause women to become immoral. The author uses rhetorical devices such as ethos, pathos, and fallacies to back up her claim while touching on issues in the church, advancements of women, and the source of disease in the world.
The female birth control pill became available to the public in 1961. During that time period the acceptance of women sexuality was becoming more common; however, critics felt that the pill promoted unnecessary female sexual behavior. The fact that a woman could partake in casual sex without worrying about becoming pregnant was an issue amongst many people in society. Although premarital sex was not completely shunned as it was a couple decades previous to that time, many still felt as if a woman should not enjoy multiple sexual relationships. Women were expected to only act or feel sexually toward one man who she was in a serious relationship with. With that being said, the grounds for accepting the use of female contraceptive...
The birth control movement took place during the early to mid 1900s. The movement was a social reform to gain women the reproductive rights they were denied of. The use of contraception or discussing contraception, as well as practicing abortion, was frowned upon and could result in an expensive fine or arrest. During the nineteenth century, women gave birth to more babies than their families could care for. Women were taught to please their husbands, regardless of if their families could afford them or not. Women were told right from wrong by men, who were always superior to them. Women did not have rights to their bodies, the use of contraception, or abortion, for what was said to benefit the country. Society mainly followed the idea of puritanism,
It is apparent that they took that into consideration as shown by the Women’s Diaries and even today is seen as their role. Women were a nurturing part of the household and therefore it was seen as their job to take care of the children.... ... middle of paper ... .... .
"People and Events: The Pill and the Sexual Revolution." PBS. PBS, n.d. Web. 12 May 2014.