4 Reasons Everyone Should Be Celebrating Global Female Condom Day

Today, advocates and activists from around the world recognize September 16 as an international day of action to increase the awareness of, access to, and use of female condoms. In 2009, the FDA approved the FC2 female condom as the only woman-initiated method of contraception that provides dual protection against pregnancy, HIV, and other STIs. Seven years later, I’m celebrating the female condom not just for its practical utility, but for the progress it represents in the movement to advance the sexual and reproductive health and rights of all people.

Still skeptical? Here are four reasons you should be celebrating, too:

1. The female condom allows women to take control of their sexual health and prioritize their pleasure — at the same time! The female condom is internal, so it can be inserted before sex, and doesn’t need to be removed immediately after sex. It can also be used during anal sex and doesn’t require an erect penis in order to be effective. Female condoms are linked with women’s increased ability to negotiate condom use with their partners as well as greater gender equality in sexual relationships and pleasure. Basically, the female condom gives everyone more ways to have protected and pleasurable sex!

2. Advocating for access to female condoms is a win for women and just plain good public health. Although women still face barriers to access like high prices and low availability, the female condom has the potential for easy distribution because it doesn’t require a prescription. Not only does this reduce the stigma and judgement some women feel when they’re forced to ask for contraception, but it helps break down the harmful myth that medical professionals always know more about women’s sexual health needs and preferences than they do. The presence of female condoms on the shelves of drug stores and health centers advances the idea that women’s contraception should be just as available as ibuprofen and breakfast cereal.

3. The female condom represents a huge step in recognizing women’s right to access reproductive health services beyond just contraception, including HIV prevention, testing and treatment, as well as safe, legal abortion, respectful maternal health care, and comprehensive post-rape care. Every woman has the right to access these services free of judgement and coercion, regardless of her gender, race, ability, sexual orientation, or financial resources. In an era when reproductive freedoms seem to be up for debate, the female condom is a physical representation of a woman’s power over her own body. Accessing all reproductive health services, including abortion, should be as easy as picking up a female condom.

4. Above all, Global Female Condom Day is about expanding the ability of all people to make choices about their bodies. For women and girls in Sub-Saharan Africa who make up more than 60% of the people living with HIV; for women and girls across Latin America fighting restrictions on their reproductive rights amidst the Zika crisis; for the LGBTQ community whose health needs are too often left out of SRHR conversations; for sex workers around the world whose health and rights are compromised daily by discriminatory policies and practices — Global Female Condom Day is for you.

For anyone exercising their human right to pursue a safe, satisfying, and pleasurable sex life — Global Female Condom Day is for you.

This day and this movement are ultimately about the expansion of choice for all people, and that’s why everyone should be celebrating Global Female Condom Day — whether you choose to use the female condom or not.