I am a firm believer in women's rights. The right to vote. To make the same amount of money as men. To be strong, independent badasses. Most importantly, the right to govern our own bodies.
It is an ongoing struggle that women face. We have a bunch of stiff old men deciding what we can and cannot do with our own bodies. But I have a strong issue with that. Women and young women alike should be allowed to decide what happens to their bodies.
Young women and girls especially need more rights concerning their bodies. The one that hits closer to home with me is access to birth control. Girls need better access to it and here's why:
Birth control is much more than a means for having sex without consequences.
Birth control is medically necessary for a lot of teens. Personally speaking, birth control has been a great regulator for my period and it has helped keep me out of debilitating pain.
A lot of women and girls depend on birth control to help them live their daily lives like normal girls. We need for teen girls to have better access to birth control so they can start taking better care of their reproductive health.
Aside from medical necessity, it is needed for actual birth control.
Let's face it, folks, teenagers have sex. *GASP* I know. Reign it in, focus. Teens are exploring their bodies and other bodies. It's going to happen. So why try to prevent them from having access to birth control that can keep them from having children before they are ready?
I know what you're thinking: Why do teens need to have sex? Because they are human beings and human beings have recreational sex. Let's make it safer for them to do so.
If you are old enough to have sex, you are old enough to have access to birth control.
Girls are getting their periods younger and younger every day. Girls are starting to educate themselves on sex and becoming sexually active as early as middle school. If they are old enough to become sexually active, they should be old enough to have access to birth control easily and without judgment.
I know that's probably a tough pill to swallow (no pun intended). But it's the reality and we have to accept it.
It is a basic human right.
Having the ability to choose what happens to you and your body is a fundamental human right. We live in the United States where we are supposed to have rights and freedoms. Granted, as of late a lot of the freedoms that come with governing our bodies are being taken away, but I digress.
It is a right to control what you put in your body and what you use your body for. Teen girls are old enough to understand and take action with their rights. So give them better access to birth control if they want or need it.
From my experience, I couldn't access birth control until I was 18 because I needed the consent of my mother to get it. I felt ashamed and I wasn't able to take proper care of myself until I was 18 and able to get my own birth control as a legal adult.
We need to stop shaming teens for being sexually active. We need to stop depriving them of their basic healthcare rights. Teen girls need access to affordable and accessible birth control that they can get without their parents and without shame or stigmas.
