With reports that male contraception is well on its way to a reality women around the world can be heard rejoicing. Or are they trembling in fear?
The long awaited male birth control may soon be commonly available. The pill under development works in similar fashion to female birth control by lowering sperm count to a level not conducive for conception. Chemically the pill is made up of testosterone and progestin, hormones that stop the production of sperm.
Seems like it could literally take a load off women who often shoulder the responsibility of not conceiving a child by taking a pill, having an implant or an IUD, using a diaphragm or making sure her partner agrees to wear a condom – or has had a vasectomy.
According to Marianne Mollmann who writes for The Huffington Post the responsibility for birth control has fluctuated historically.
The use of modern contraceptive methods started at least in part as a male project. George Bernard Shaw called rubber condoms the “greatest invention of the 19th century”.
This male control over contraception was seen by some suffrage leaders as immoral, because it made it easier for married men to cheat on their wives. Later feminists saw access to woman-controlled birth control as essential to advancing women as equals, in particular women from the working classes.
Male contraception remains very much in the mix, though, and contraception decisions still are very much a matter of trust and control.
Trust and control. Those are strong words.
Who takes the control in your relationship? Who is responsible for contraception? What about past relationships?
Think about it and think about how lucky we are to be discussing this in 2011 as you flick through this gallery of contraceptive devices from days gone by.
Top Comments
I think the most important thing is that there'd be men who would be very happy to be able to control contraception. Condoms don't afford enough protection if the female is wanting to fall pregnant. Sadly there are plenty of men who have been used and at the end of the day they have no rights whatsoever. If they don't want the child to be born they can't insist on an abortion. If the mother doesn't want it to be born, it doesn't matter what the father wants, he can't stop the abortion. More power to men I say.
Contraception for men has already been trialled successfully but not rolled out. It has been proven to be fully effective, last nearly a decade and the single injection costs less than the syringe cost.
It can be easily flushed out as well, enabling couples engaged in unprotected sex to have more options than they currently have.
I believe that contraception should be an equal duty and men need more choice, that is why I urge everyone to please sign this petition:
https://www.change.org/en-G...