‘The pill’ started our moral decline

LAST month marked the 50th anniversary of the contraceptive pill.

In the 1960s “the pill” was heralded as a development that would liberate women from male dominance and lead to fewer divorces, fewer unwanted pregnancies and fewer abortions.

It is now clear things did not turn out that way. As the pill became more widespread the number of divorces and abortions soared. We saw a lowering of moral standards and a rise in infidelity and promiscuity. The wellbeing of children generally declined, from depression to diet to the number living in poverty and experiencing abuse or neglect. Though women now have access to places and positions that once belonged to men they have never been seen more as sex objects than they are today.