(hell, yeah) Scarleteen

Just a few months ago, a Michigan state representative was banned from speaking on her own legislature’s floor after saying “vagina.” In Virginia, a squeamish lawmaker simply called it “V.” This year, several states also enacted laws mandating that abstinence be stressed in sex education classes, bringing to 26 the total number of states with such policies. Meanwhile, Todd “legitimate rape” Akin schooled us in medieval biology. ‘Nuff said.

Somehow, we’ve arrived at a place where euphemisms are preferable, ignorance is tolerated, and politicians are seeking to turn back the clock on a woman’s right to dictate the terms of her personal and professional future.

So, in recognition of World Contraception Day, we put together this slideshow. Pulled from archives at the National Institutes of Health, these vintage contraception ads from around the globe date back as far as 1969. They tell it like it is—with humor, a few tacky hairdos, and a bluntness that will surely please anyone who’s tired of the talk-arounds.

From Mother Jones