Following the success of her sketch “Girl You Don’t Need Makeup,” Amy Schumer once again uses humor to expose yet another flaw in our society. In her own funny version of a prescription drug advertisement, “Ask If Birth Control Is Right For You,” Amy uncovers the difficulties women face when obtaining birth control. The video starts out as all prescription commercials usually do, with a soothing voiceover persuading women everywhere that they need birth control. The familiar anonymous voice then introduces the, “Ask your doctor if birth control is right for you…” pitch—except it doesn’t stop there. Not only are women required to ask their doctor, but they are also urged to ask a boy scout, the mail man, their mom’s new boyfriend and basically every other man they come across in their day.
SPOT. ON.
Posted by NARAL Pro-Choice America on Monday, May 4, 2015
While the video may come off as humorous, Amy efficiently illustrates the painfully real obstacles women face when trying to acquire birth control. She points out that every barrier women encounter is associated with a male figure, which as a result, brings out the irony in the dilemma. In the video, Amy is subjected to having to ask everyone except herself if birth control is right for her. She effectively portrays the unfair predicament women have been placed in in which it seems as if we have no control over what happens to our own bodies. For example, the 2014 Hobby Lobby Supreme Court case ruled that employers were not required to provide coverage for all types of birth control to their female employees. Even under the Affordable Care Act, the insurance companies are the ones that decide “how they provide coverage for their members.” Amy’s video is a step in the right direction for spreading awareness of an often silenced issue that affects all women across the United States.