Birth-Control Movement In The US: A Feminit Perspective

Over a long period of time, the "family planning" policy or "birth-quota" program of many developing or undeveloped countries has been sharply condemned by the U.S. government as "human rights abuses". In fact, there has also been a birth-control movement in the U.S.: a movement that began as early as the 1870s and now is still in progress. Due to differences in political, social and cultural background, together with differing values and moralities, the American birth-control movement varies greatly from that of other countries. The understanding of the theories and background of the movement is of great significance to the further comprehension of American politics, society and culture.The birth-control movement in the US, primarily initiated and organized by feminists, is a large-scale social movement with great continuity and increasing influence on American society. Altogether the movement passed through four distinct stages: the original "Voluntary Motherhood" (the 1870s), the "Birth Control" (1910-1920), the "Planned Parenthood" (1940-1950), and the "Reproductive Rights" (1970-1980). Each stage assumed different forms and took on varied meanings. Apart from feminism, many other social movements, the sexual revolution for instance, had exerted profound impact on the birth-control movement, and so had other social forces-religion, medicine, science and technology, etc. Feminist in perspective, the thesis analyzes the development of the four stages and argues that feminism functioned as an indisputable ongoing force beneath nearly each surge of birth control in U.S. history.