Mississippi lawmaker files ‘Contraception Begins at Erection Act,’ in an attempt to bring men into the conversation
The bill would impose fines of up to $10,000 on men who engage in unprotected sex without the goal of pregnancy.
A Mississippi state senator from Jackson has had enough of the litany of bills surrounding contraception and abortion being solely focused on a woman’s role in conception. So he decided to do something about it.
Democratic Senator Bradford Blackmon recently introduced legislation that would make it unlawful for a person to “discharge genetic material without the intent of fertilizing an embryo.” SB 3219, or the “Contraception Begins at Erection Act,” would impose fines of up to $10,000 for men convicted of the crime. The bill does not state whether the conviction would be considered a misdemeanor or a felony.
In a statement to Jackson’s WLBT news, Blackmon said, “All across the country, especially here in Mississippi, the vast majority of bills relating to contraception and/or abortion focus on the woman’s role when men are fifty percent of the equation.”
The first time a person was convicted of the offense, they’d be subject to a fine of $1,000. A conviction for a second offense would impose a fine of $5,000. Any third or subsequent offenses would impose a hefty fine of $10,000 per conviction. It is unclear how the law, should it become law, would be enforced.
On the other end of the spectrum, there could be no fine imposed for the discharge of genetic material that is to be donated or sold to a facility for the purpose of future procedures or fertilization or if contraception intended to prevent fertilization was employed. In short, use protection when engaging in sexual activity or face financial repercussions for both the act and the potential ensuing years of child-rearing.
One thing is for certain, it’s a unique, albeit flaccid — pun intended — approach to require accountability on the part of men in the conversation around contraception, one that often places the burden on women to ensure they don’t get pregnant. While the 18-year financial burden of parenting and raising children isn’t typically seen as a deterrent, perhaps a more straightforward fine process could lead to more responsible sexual activity.
Blackmon’s goal is to change the conversation, and he’s fine if people find it untenable.
“This bill highlights that fact and brings the man’s role into the conversation. People can get up in arms and call it absurd but I can’t say that bothers me.”
Panama Jackson is a columnist at theGrio and host of the award-winning podcast, “Dear Culture” on theGrio Black Podcast Network. He writes very Black things, drinks very brown liquors, and is pretty fly for a light guy. His biggest accomplishment to date coincides with his Blackest accomplishment to date in that he received a phone call from Oprah Winfrey after she read one of his pieces (biggest) but he didn’t answer the phone because the caller ID said “Unknown” (Blackest).
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