North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R), an anti-LGBTQ+ politician who is his party’s nominee for governor this year, has said he has a problem with birth control “being forced on very young ladies” because it might make them more sexually promiscuous.
Robinson made this claim at an August 26 meet-and-greet event in Rockingham County. At the event, an undercover Democratic research operative asked what he could do about young women being pressured into taking birth control, The Huffington Post reported. Robinson replied, “The only thing I don’t like about birth control is when it’s being forced on very young ladies.”
The operative then said that birth control may make young women “a little bit more inclined to be promiscuous.” Robinson replied, “I think so,” adding, “You know, those are personal opinions. But you know, working those into legislation is tricky.”
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Republicans have long claimed that the availability of contraceptives (like condoms and birth control pills) and sexual education make young people more sexually active. As such, Republicans have supported abstinence-only education—which focuses on the dangers of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs)—or no sexual education classes in schools whatsoever, leaving such discussions to family members.
Contraceptives and comprehensive sex education lower rates of sexual activity among young people, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). These also result in a reduced number of sexual partners, reduced frequency of unprotected sex and fewer pregnancies and STIs.
Young women use birth control pills for reasons unrelated to sex, including to reduce menstrual cramps, heavy periods of menstruation, and nutrient deficiencies or to treat other conditions like acne, cysts, and ovarian cancer, Huffington Post writer Jennifer Bendery noted.
Robinson’s replies will likely hurt his flagging campaign to become North Carolina’s new governor. His Democratic opponent, state Attorney General Josh Stein, has run political ads highlighting Robinson’s complete opposition to abortion, even in cases of rape or incest.
“Abortion in this country is not about protecting the lives of mothers. It is about killing the child because you weren’t responsible enough to keep your skirt down,” Robinson has said. He has also said that once a woman becomes pregnant, “It’s not your body anymore.”
Robinson—who was recently accused of regularly patronizing state porn shops—has previously said that school shootings are God’s punishment for abortions. In 1989, he paid for his then-girlfriend to get an abortion. He has since called that abortion “a mistake.”
Robinson has also said that he considers LGBTQ+ people as “filthy” “demons” who “mentally rape” children. Among his many anti-LGBTQ+ statements, he has called homosexuality “an abominable sin,” has compared LGBTQ+ people to cow dung, and Satanic demons, and said trans people should defecate on public street corners outside rather than using bathrooms matching their gender identity. He has also made numerous racist and antisemitic comments.
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