ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the culture of contraception in the 1960s and the 1970s. These two decades were distinct in Queensland for their access to birth control and the increase in available reproductive health choices. Despite tangible medical and technical advancements in contraception, the 1960s was a decade of surprisingly slow change for fertility control. However, the establishment of reproductive health organisations in the 1970s progressively changed the political and social landscape for women accessing contraception. Where the 1960s saw general practitioners as the sole providers of birth control, the 1970s demonstrated the power of community health organisations in facilitating choice. Over time, and with more urgent medical, social, and economic pressures, contraception was progressively embraced by a larger proportion of Queenslanders as a viable option for family planning, disease prevention, and reproductive health largely due to the work of these reproductive health organisations. This uptake in usage is particularly significant as it represents changing political, medical, and legal approaches to reproduction regulation during this period.
