Abstract
Emergency contraception is a theme of great social unrest in Brazil. The term refers to notions such as “risk pregnancy”, “unprotected sex”, (ir)responsibility or (ir)rationality in face of sexual practice, which contradicts public health norms that claim the need for protection against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Unlikely the oral contraceptive pill of regular use, which has greater social acceptance among laypeople and experts, emergency contraception arises many controversies. We discuss this discomfort or demonization regarding the emergency contraception based on an anthropological research carried on with pharmacists and pharmacy sellers about this subject. This article discusses two mains analytical perspectives: the first is a kind of strategy that calls attention to the dangers and potential health risks that this contraceptive can have into women’s bodies, especially into young and poor women’s bodies, since there is great fear about reproduction in these groups. The second argues that the use of emergency contraception explicit female agency, perspective that diverges from some moral, cultural, social and gender hierarchies.
Keywords
emergency contraception; gender; moralities; sexuality