The 1960s: a contraceptive revolution?
Before the 1960s, in heterosexual couples, contraception relied almost exclusively on men: withdrawal, condoms, periodic abstinence (which was, in itself, more of a shared responsibility). Controlling fertility was then a masculine skill, even a source of pride.
1967. The Neuwirth law transformed women's lives and opened up a new space. It legalized contraception and enabled the dissemination of the pill and the IUD. The pill became a symbol, carrying with it the promise of access to fulfilling sexuality, dissociated from reproduction.
A delay that is no coincidence
A dual movement was initiated as a result of this cultural shift: an acceleration of research into female contraception and a near halt to all studies on male contraception. Over time, the paradigm shifted, men turned away from the subject, and the pill became the norm, replacing previously used methods. Internalized female responsibility. A "that's just how it is." Every revolution shifts boundaries.
Late 1970s. Dr. Mieusset developed the thermal contraception method through testicular ascent. The heated underwear or Toulouse "remonte-couilles," that's the one. A non-hormonal, non-invasive, reversible, and documented male contraceptive alternative… but relegated to the margins. Not due to a lack of data, studies, or efficacy—the practical efficacy of CTRT is 4 times higher than that of the female contraceptive pill*—but due to a lack of investment, support, and entrepreneurial attempts. Out of fear of a supposed uncertain or even absent market. Also due to cultural inertia.
During the same period, ARDECOM (Association for Research and Development of Male Contraception) was structured. The men who comprise it challenge clichés and refuse to embody a dominant, productive masculinity constantly focused on performance. In short, a certain image imposed by a patriarchal society with which they do not identify or adhere.
*Clinical Guide "So-called 'male' contraception," College of General Medicine
The contraceptive burden, an unexamined relational aspect
Sixty years later, the male contraceptive landscape remains limited: condoms or vasectomy. Between a sometimes undesirable and ineffective constraint and a definitive decision, the range remains narrow. An in-between is missing.
The question is not about imposing a new injunction on men. It is more demanding and, above all, more inclusive: how does everyone take their part? In Ejaculate with Responsibility, Gabrielle Blair shifts the starting point: a pregnancy begins with ejaculation. What if contraceptive responsibility also lay with those who ejaculate?
The pill has been one of the pillars of women's emancipation — necessary and vital. But it has also established an asymmetric distribution of the contraceptive burden. An additional mental load. Not to mention its multiple harmful side effects on well-being, body, and health (physical and mental).
Contraception is not just a device. It is a personal decision first, a conversation with one's partner(s) next, a sharing and a choice that makes room for equity.
And today?
Male contraception is finally emerging from the margins: social networks, podcasts, comic books, essays.
Les Contraceptés by Guillaume Daudin, Stéphane Jourdain, and Caroline Lee humorously and pedagogically explores the evolution of male contraception and its political and medical implications.
L’homme sous pilule by Anne-Sophie Delcour and Lucy Macaroni imagines an inverted world, revealing current asymmetries.
Le cœur des zobs by Bobika directly questions masculinity and reproductive responsibility through a self-narrated experience.
These works share a common thread: they shift the subject from the intimate to the political. They make visible what has long remained silent. Innovation does not depend solely on science. It also depends on our representations and what society is ready to embrace and transform.
Research is advancing. Hormonal solutions — such as the NES/T gel developed by the National Institutes of Health in the United States — are continuing their clinical trials. Non-hormonal avenues are also emerging, as is an approach exploring the reversible obstruction of the vas deferens. These innovations will still require several years of development, but all bear witness to a shift.
Yes, there is a historical disparity. But we are also at a turning point. Gender norms are cracking, mental load is being questioned, expectations are evolving. And male contraception is gradually ceasing to be an exception to become a real possibility. Because the intimate is more political than ever. The wave of male contraception is now.
Some historical landmarks for France
Late 19th century — First vulcanized rubber condoms and industrialization of the modern condom
1956 — First clinical trials of the contraceptive pill
1967 — Neuwirth Law
1971 — Manifesto of the 343
1975 — Veil Law
1977 — Creation of ARDECOM
1980s — Works by Dr. Roger Mieusset
2000s — Male hormonal trials but cessation and non-commercialization
2010 — Re-emergence of the subject
2001 — Legalization of sterilization methods
2015-2018 — Creation of support collectives for users of thermal contraception and the androswitch
