Legal Definitions - contraceptivism

Contraceptivism

Historically, contraceptivism referred to the criminal offense of providing or prescribing methods of birth control. This term describes a period when laws in certain jurisdictions made it illegal for individuals, often medical professionals or pharmacists, to distribute, sell, or medically recommend contraceptives, subjecting them to criminal prosecution.

• Imagine a pharmacist in the early 20th century operating in a state where anti-contraception laws were strictly enforced. If this pharmacist were to sell a package of condoms or a diaphragm to a married customer, they could be charged with contraceptivism. The act of "distributing" these contraceptive devices, even for private use, would have been considered a criminal offense under such historical statutes.

• Consider a physician practicing medicine during a time when laws prohibited the dissemination of birth control information and devices. If this doctor were to examine a patient and then write a prescription for a spermicidal jelly or advise on a specific barrier method for family planning, they would be committing the offense of contraceptivism. Their professional act of "prescribing" or medically advising on contraception would have been illegal.