Japanese women are refusing to take birth control pills, opting to leave contraception up to men. Do you know what they call women who leave birth control up to men? Mothers.

The line uses a setup-and-punchline structure to criticize the idea of delegating contraception primarily to men. By ending with “Mothers,” it implies that relying on male partners to consistently manage birth control is often unrealistic, and that the consequences of contraceptive failure—pregnancy and childrearing—fall disproportionately on women. The reference to “Japanese women” frames the joke as a commentary on gendered responsibility and risk in sexual health decisions, suggesting that social norms, medical hesitancy, or policy environments can shape who bears the burden of prevention. The humor is barbed: it turns a purported choice into an outcome, underscoring unequal stakes.