CAMPUS NEWS March 2005 2
First FMLA event emphasizes emergency contraceptive awareness
ROBIN GARY
Staff Writer
The Feminist Major
ity Leadership Alliance
(FMLA) is a new group
on campus started by Tif
fany Stokes. Her second in
command is Kassidy Loy,
a junior at Meredith, and
the faculty advisor for the
organization is Dr. Sherry
Shapiro. The FMLA held
their first on-campus event
last Tuesday, March 22,
2005 in the Cate Center
to support a new national
campaign implemented
by the Feminist Majority
Foundation: Back Up Your
Birth Control Day. Stokes
said, “The goal of this
event is to spread aware
ness about emergency con
traception; what it means;
when you need it; why you
should have a prescrip
tion on hand; and to clear
up some of the miscon
ceptions about Emergen
cy Contraception (EC).”
Loy added, “I think it’s
important for women to
know about EC because not
everyone is on regular birth
control. I’m sure there are
many women who are sexu
ally active that don’t always
have condoms. It’s impor
tant for women to know
they have access to a form
of birth control other than
the traditional methods.”
EC is a safe and effective
way to prevent pregnancy
after unprotected sex and
can be taken up to 5 days
after sexual intercourse.
However, the sooner EC is
used, the more effective it
is. Stokes said, “there are
all sorts of reasons why you
would need EC — the con
dom breaks; you don’t plan
to have sex; you’re forced
to have sex; you miss two
or more birth control pills
consecutively.” EC con-
photo courtesy of Robin Gary
Tiffany Stokes, found of FMLA at Meredith, explains
tlie goais of the Back Up Your Birth Controi campaign to a student Tuesday
tains the same active in- in the same way. Stokes
gredients as hormonal said, “A common miscon-
contraceptives and works ception is that EC is the
YOUR
Bin
CONTROL
'wiWi
BE PREPARED
TO PROTECT YOURSELF IN CASE:
v'5 THE CONDOM BREAKS YOU FORGOT TO TAKE YOUR PILL
OR, YOU HAD SEX WHEN YOU DIDN’T WANT OR PIJVN TO
' Contraception Within 1 20 hOUrs of improtecteiJ sex can prevent pregnancy — but the SOOner the better.
Ask your Nealtticare provide about an advance supplyol EC (Emergency Contfdception}.
1-888-N0T-2-LATE
backupyourbirthcontrol.org
abortion pill and that when
you take it, it will termi
nate your pregnancy. But if
you’re already pregnant it
will not make you lose the
baby.” EC cannot interrupt
an established pregnancy.
Currently EC is avail
able only by prescription,
though there is a move
ment for making it avail
able over-the-counter.
Stokes and Loy planned
the event in the hope that
it would “start to raise
discussion on campus
and get people thinking
about what our resources
are as women on campus
and in the community.”
Loy added, “We want to
get information out to Mer
edith students about EC,
and get the word out that
we’re starting a feminist
club and would like people
to join us. This is one of the
things that we represent and
only one of the events that
we’ll be doing on campus.”
For more informa
tion about the FMLA or
Emergency Contraception
you can contact Stokes at
stokfe.sta@meredilh,edu.