Reproductive Rights and Education

The “Contraception” manuscript was released and distributed to the US army in September of 1980. It opens by stating the authors’ intended audience to be both men and women, and with a disclaimer that assures readers they are not trying to persuade them to be either sexually active or abstinent. The pamphlet goes on to describe a brief history of contraception around the world, starting as early as the 1700s with what can be considered the first condom (known then as the “English Riding Coat”). It details how sexual intercourse and pregnancy occur, and the repercussions one would have to face if they so choose to not use protection during sexual activities. The majority of the booklet describes contraceptive methods, including: abstention, surgical procedure, the pill, IUD, rhythm, withdrawal, diaphragm, cream, jelly, foam, and condoms. The second piece, a state document from the Legislative Reference Bureau of 2006, describes a different approach to sex education. It opens with a description of the Wisconsin state law that schools must educate their students based on what is considered age appropriate for that grade level. The 2005 Wisconsin Act 445 deemed this to be abstinence only education, as it is the “most effective way to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases”. It is regressive to teach abstinence only sex education in the 2000s, especially considering that all contraceptives were taught in the 1980s. 25 years later, after science has provided us with more information and more technology to teach this new information, more should be taught than before: not less. It is also naive to believe that abstinence will be respected by all students in Wisconsin school districts. The truth is, there are students that are having sex, regardless of the repurcussions. To ensure they are having sex safely, it is important they are taught about other forms of contraception. The army was taught about these forms of contraception because if a soldier becomes pregnant or contracts a sexually transmitted disease, they will no longer be able to serve. If either situation happens to a student, they will not be able to attend class for a period of time, or, even worse, will not complete their education. The US army knew how to educate them to prevent such cases from happening in the 1980s, so why are school districts not providing that same education to their students today? Another issue with these systems of sex education is they put all of the responsibility on the women. In the “Contraception” pamphlet, seven of the eleven contraceptives were to be used exclusively by women. Another three of them could be used by both sexes. This leaves only one procedure left exclusively for men, which is withdrawal. This is particularly upsetting because withdrawal, unlike the options meant just for women, requires no payment, no preparation, no schedule conflict, no pain. Simply in the moment, the man must ensure he does not ejaculate in the woman. Women, however, are expected to be poked and prodded. They have metal inserted into themselves, take pills that have to be taken at the exact same time every day to be effective (which causes a lot of stress!), and have uncomfortable creams applied that have to be used hours before even engaging in sexual activity. The strict demands of the pill are illustrated in "Same Time Every Day"  from “This is an emergency! : a reproductive rights and gender portfolio curated by Meredith Stern. The piece itself is illustrated by Lois Harada. It is layed out to represent a pack of birth control pills, with the phrase "SAME TIME EVERY DAY" written down the package. These words emphasize the meaning behind the piece, which goes to show the daily effect birth control can have on a woman’s life. First, when using birth control pills women must take them at the same time every day to ensure the effectiveness of the pill is at its highest level. This strict demand can become an inconvenience for women and creates anxiety and fear surrounding the pills. I would additionally like to mention other effects the pill can have, such as changes in mood, weight, and diet. These sporadic changes are represented in the image by the variation of colors of the pills. The possible side effects of birth control vary from person to person and change throughout the continued use of the pill. Sex leading to pregnancy involves both a man and a woman, so it is extremely unreasonable that only the women are expected to be prepared at all times for safe sexual intercourse. Such concepts also relate to the other exhibits within this collection, specifically the Brookline Clinic Shooting painting. This painting honors the doctors who performed abortions for women who did not have legal access to them. The doctors were killed for performing these surgeries. These doctors were killed for ensuring the health and safety of their patients. Proper health care, when it comes to contraception and sexual intervention, can be inaccessible and unsafe. This is extremely inconvenient for the people who require it to stay healthy. Sex education needs to become more of an open conversation so that everyone understands that they all play an important role in keeping themselves and others safe, and that contraception is necessary for those who wish to engage safely in sexual activities.