In this episode, I talk with Associate Professor of Sociology Dr Kystale Littlejohn about her book, Just Get on the Pill. A keenly researched and incisive examination, Dr Littlejohn investigates how birth control became a fundamentally unbalanced and gendered responsibility.
Though it takes two people to make a pregnancy, prevention is seen almost entirely as a womanâs responsibility. In Just Get On The Pill, Dr Littlejohn breaks this down, unpacking how this gendered approach encroaches on reproductive and bodily autonomy and poses obstacles for preventing disease.
Some topics of discussion include:
1. Societyâs ideas about gender, the phenomenon of âgendered compulsory birth controlâ and the need to see pregnancy prevention as yet another form of domestic labor
2. The importance of language, and the problem with words like male and female condoms, and also âstealthingâ... which should really just be called sexual assault
3. How poor women are blamed for causing unintended pregnancies instead of recognising that poverty is a reason people might label their pregnancies as undesired in the first place
4. How gendering birth control alienates trans, intersex and gender nonconforming people
5. What a more liberating approach to birth control looks like
And more!
The quotes you will hear read during the interview are taken directly from the book, Just Get on the Pill.
Transcription is available here: https://www.thestoryofwomanpodcast.com/blog/e7-woman-and-birth-control-dr-krystale-littlejohn-just-get-on-the-pill
Buy the book:
US: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9780520307452
UK: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/9266/9780520307452
Mentioned in the episode:
Children of Blood and Bone - Tomi Adeyemi: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9781250170972
Killing the Black Body - Dorothy Roberts: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9780679758693
Sexual Justice - Alexandra Brodsky: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9781250262547
Where to find Dr Krystale Littlejohn: https://www.krystalelittlejohn.com/
--
- Become a Patron for access to bonus content and to support the podcast, or buy me a (metaphorical) coffee
- Follow along: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Tik Tok | Youtube | LinkedIn
- Subscribe to the newsletter
- Follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts - and be sure to rate and review to help other people find us!
- Explore The Story of Woman book recommendations in the US and the UK - purchases support the podcast AND local bookstores đ€©
^links can be found on The Story of Woman Youtube channel or The Story of Woman website
www.thestoryofwomanpodcast.com
Though it takes two people to make a pregnancy, prevention is seen almost entirely as a womanâs responsibility. In Just Get On The Pill, Dr Littlejohn breaks this down, unpacking how this gendered approach encroaches on reproductive and bodily autonomy and poses obstacles for preventing disease.
Some topics of discussion include:
1. Societyâs ideas about gender, the phenomenon of âgendered compulsory birth controlâ and the need to see pregnancy prevention as yet another form of domestic labor
2. The importance of language, and the problem with words like male and female condoms, and also âstealthingâ... which should really just be called sexual assault
3. How poor women are blamed for causing unintended pregnancies instead of recognising that poverty is a reason people might label their pregnancies as undesired in the first place
4. How gendering birth control alienates trans, intersex and gender nonconforming people
5. What a more liberating approach to birth control looks like
And more!
The quotes you will hear read during the interview are taken directly from the book, Just Get on the Pill.
Transcription is available here: https://www.thestoryofwomanpodcast.com/blog/e7-woman-and-birth-control-dr-krystale-littlejohn-just-get-on-the-pill
Buy the book:
US: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9780520307452
UK: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/9266/9780520307452
Mentioned in the episode:
Children of Blood and Bone - Tomi Adeyemi: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9781250170972
Killing the Black Body - Dorothy Roberts: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9780679758693
Sexual Justice - Alexandra Brodsky: https://bookshop.org/a/80198/9781250262547
Where to find Dr Krystale Littlejohn: https://www.krystalelittlejohn.com/
--
- Become a Patron for access to bonus content and to support the podcast, or buy me a (metaphorical) coffee
- Follow along: Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Tik Tok | Youtube | LinkedIn
- Subscribe to the newsletter
- Follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts - and be sure to rate and review to help other people find us!
- Explore The Story of Woman book recommendations in the US and the UK - purchases support the podcast AND local bookstores đ€©
^links can be found on The Story of Woman Youtube channel or The Story of Woman website
www.thestoryofwomanpodcast.com
Related Videos
S2 E4. Woman and Change: Activism with Tawakkol Karman, Yemeni Nobel Laureate
In this episode I speak with Tawakkol Karman, a human rights activist, journalist and politician who is known as the âmother of the revolutionâ, âthe iron womanâ and âthe lady of the Arab Spring,â for her key role in the 2011 pro-democracy uprisings in Yemen, also known as the Arab Spring. https://w...
What keeps Hillary Clinton hopeful
Listen to the full episode: https://www.thestoryofwomanpodcast.com/episode/s2-e1-woman-and-change-setting-the-scene-with-hillary-clinton-and-cherie-blair Video credit: Kate York
Hillary Clinton and Cherie Blair on the importance of challenging stereotypes
Listen to the full episode: https://www.thestoryofwomanpodcast.com/episode/s2-e1-woman-and-change-setting-the-scene-with-hillary-clinton-and-cherie-blair Video credit: Kate York