Community, contraception, and controversy: a history of the Lethbridge Birth Control and Information Centre in the 1970s
Loading...
Date
2013
Authors
Patton, Karissa R.
University of Lethbridge. Faculty of Arts and Science
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Lethbridge, Alta. : University of Lethbridge, Dept. of History
Abstract
This honours thesis examines the history of the Lethbridge Birth Control and Information
Centre (LBCIC) and the representation and acceptance of it within the community of Lethbridge
as well as the Centre’s influence on the local community. The LBCIC represents the wider fight
for women’s reproductive rights, acceptance of all sexualities, and women’s equality in the
1970s. This Southern Albertan organization is particularly significant because there is still a
regional resistance to accessible contraception and women’s reproductive rights. The purpose of
this honours thesis is to fill the historical gap and to educate scholars and citizens of Southern
Alberta on this significant history of regional women’s activism. This research illustrates how
the community of Lethbridge was divided in terms of social views, mores and acceptance of the
services and education provided by LBCIC. The story of the struggle to establish the LBCIC in
Southern Alberta enlarges the history of birth control activism in Canada. Moreover, I hope to
inspire continued awareness of the importance of women’s reproductive rights through this
research. The first chapter, using material from interviews recognizes the organized activism of
these five women, and how they raised consciousness about women’s reproductive rights in
Lethbridge, and Canadian, society during the 1970s. The first chapter also determines that their
advocacy widens the national historical narrative on birth control and women’s reproductive
rights activism by including Southern Albertan, rural, and small town activist experiences. The
second chapter investigates letters to Lethbridge City Council during the 1974 LBCIC funding
controversy, analyzing public declarations of parental authority to argue against the supporters of
the LBCIC. Chapter three discusses the eroding boundaries public/private divide posed by birth
control debate.
Description
95 p. : illustrated
Keywords
Birth control -- Alberta -- Lethbridge , Lethbridge Birth Control and Information Centre (LBCIC) , Reproductive rights -- Alberta -- Lethbridge , Birth control activism in southern Alberta , Reproductive rights activism in southern Alberta , Women -- Political activity -- Alberta -- History , Women's rights -- Alberta -- History