Why Are Feminists Against The Male Pill?

Jesus_marley · 2012-05-15T14:49:39+00:00

I've heard comments from feminists in discussions on this topic that are both for it and against it. The most common argument that I have heard is that "men cannot be trusted to take it". Setting aside for a moment the fact that such a comment is misandrist in the extreme, that is not the primary reason I dislike this argument. This argument makes the completely unwarranted assumption that by providing men with a new birth control option it somehow relieves women of their own obligation to their reproductive health. Somehow by giving a man access to a pill the onus then falls entirely on him. NEWSFLASH! - The male birth control pill is for HIM. It gives men the capacity to regulate their own sexual and reproductive freedom completely separate from women. If women want to be sure not to get pregnant, they have their own forms of BC to use. There is no law in place (as far as I know) that dictates that if one person has BC than the other person is obligated to trust them to use it properly. Here's a completely radical idea. Worry about your own damn self. Once the male birth control pill (or other more promising BC such as RISUG) becomes readily available, if you don't want to become pregnant use your own birth control. That way you don't have to worry about whether the other person is lying to you about theirs.

TL;DR - The male birth control pill is for HIS benefit, not yours. If you are really that worried about him using it, use your own and STFU.

2012-05-15T18:21:41+00:00

I am a feminist and I fully support expanding male contraceptive options. Every other woman, whose opinion I've heard on the matter, supports expanding male contraceptive options. Shocking, I know.

It's true, however, that I wouldn't trust my partner to take oral contraceptives as the only form of birth control, but I would be ok with a shot or an implant. I think it is perfectly fair because I don't trust myself with daily oral contraceptives, either, hence the IUD. There is just too much room for error with bc that you have to take daily.

I would obviously still support male bc pill being available to people with higher tolerance for risk, just as I support female bc pill being available now.

Agent_Gman · 2012-05-15T12:58:21+00:00

I don't think they are.

This guy has a good discussion about the issue and even links to feminists responses on the topic. He breaks down common strawman arguments and shows that there aren't really any serious views against a male pill.

2012-05-15T14:05:55+00:00

Why indeed are feminists, and probably most women for that matter

I doubt it. So far it's Betty Friedan and her ilk. If this kind of thing got spread around I'm pretty sure you'd get other feminists to turn on her.

rightsbot · 2012-05-15T12:28:18+00:00

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silverionmox · 2012-05-15T15:39:16+00:00

Because the identity of many women relies, among other things, on being the primary caretaker of the children, the center of the household. There has been a study what would happen when men started to spend more time with/on their children: the women on average did not use their extra time to advance their careers, expand their hobbies or enliven their social life: they started to spend even more time than they already did on their children, so they could remain the primary parent.

As an aside, that blog is talk radio. It's useful in its breaking down of entrenched points of view, but the drivel it offers to replace them is just as bad.

mzmarymack · 2012-05-15T19:48:17+00:00

I've been discussing "the male pill" and male birth control in general with a lot of people, and no one I've talked to is seriously against it. There were definitely women (and feminists, although the categories are not one in the same) who worried about the reliability of the male pill-- after all, a good number of women don't even use the pill correctly, and a lot of women I talked to were super worried about pregnancy overall. However, when I pointed out that the male pill would be to allow men control of their reproductive health, no one argued that this would be a bad thing.

In general, the most vocal support I've heard has come from women, namely self-identified feminists who argue that men should be afforded control over their reproductive health in the same manner as women. The people who were most against it, in my purely anecdotal experience: two men, both of whom were adamant that the male pill would be used to trick women into having unprotected sex. =/

Another perspective: in some communities and countries, men who have sex with men (MSM) are the highest spreaders of HIV to women. (Depending on the population, many of these women are also in fact wives/long-term partners.) Based on this behavior, I'd say there's a reason to worry that the male pill will increase the spread of STIs and risky sexual behavior with women.

InfinitelyThirsting · 2012-05-15T15:20:43+00:00

90% of women, feminist or not, I've ever talked to about this is against it. Reasons:

-Men can't be trusted to take the pill. Will knock up helpless women.

-Nature made women the arbiters of reproduction, and the pill goes against the natural order.

-God made women the arbiters of reproduction, and the pill goes against the natural order.

-A woman might really want to have a baby, and it's not fair for her husband to have full control over the decision.

-Men will say they are on the pill when they are not, thereby bamboozling helpless women into getting pregnant.

Bobsutan · 2012-05-15T16:14:10+00:00

I honestly had no idea that anybody (other than religious extremists) could possible be against a male birth control pill. Actually, I really want to see WHERE a woman has ever been against it, because I'm googling like crazy and I'm not seeing anything.

GudrunGut · 2012-05-17T16:48:20+00:00

Where are all of these Feminists I have never met or heard of who are somehow against male birth control? I've been in the Feminist community for a decade. Online, offline, most of my friends are Feminist activists.

Every single one of them thinks it's about time men got medical birth control; including myself.

...When am I going to meet these straw Feminists(all of them!)/women(Most of them!)? Where do they live? What do they look like? Green? Extra toes?

Malkor · 2012-05-15T13:03:33+00:00

An anecdote from some Brazilian talk-show probably does not represent 'feminists, and probably most women'. I'm guessing that they'd be happy that men are able to share in the responsibility of preventing unwanted pregnancies.

But don't let that stop the whargl blargl

manboobz · 2012-05-15T21:17:15+00:00

I'm all for a male pill, and so are all the feminists I know.

I don't believe the Brazilian doctor's story, and I've never seen a reference to it that's not based on this one video. Can anyone point me to another independent source that might confirm what he says happened?

Irrel_M · 2012-05-15T17:20:01+00:00

Power, nothing more.

filo4000 · 2012-05-15T18:08:22+00:00

Theres a general dislike of birth control pills as they don't protect against disease, however the solution is to encourage multiple forms of birth control including condoms

That being said, your thread title is a loaded dishonest question

Collective82 · 2012-05-15T12:42:49+00:00

Because then WE could say "oh yeah sure cutey I took my pill", and not have done that when we engage in one night stands. Also it takes power away from them, and even though they cry equailty, its not always that way. Plus if this is the cottonseed pill version then guys become even more aroused and want sex more lol.

Title	Why Are Feminists Against The Male Pill?
Author	Bobsutan
Upvotes	11
Comments	55
Date	May 15, 2012 12:26 PM UTC (14 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/MensRights
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/MensRights/comments/to3rv/why_are_feminists_against_the_male_pill/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/MensRights/why-are-feminists-against-the-male-pill.1021831 https://theredarchive.com/post/1021831

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