Teen groups push Congress for comprehensive sex ed.

Melissa McEwan
Published: February 23, 2006

As the Bush administration continues to fund only abstinence-only sex education, American youth are taking comprehensive sex education into their own hands, RAW STORY has learned.

Programs favored by the administration often censor information about birth control and abortion completely. A December 2004 report commissioned by Representative Henry Waxman (D-California) found 11 out of 13 abstinence-only curricula examined to contain errors and distortions.

According to The Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit organization focused on sexual and reproductive health research, policy analysis and public education, there are currently three federal programs?-Section 510 of the Social Security Act, the Adolescent Family Life Act and the Special Projects of Regional and National Significance program?-dedicated to funding abstinence-only sex education. None are dedicated to funding comprehensive sex education, even though the latter has been shown more effective in delaying sexual activity in teens and encouraging wiser and safer choices when teens do engage in sexual activity.

With an administration nonetheless intent on abstinence- only education, youth are opting to pick up the fight on their own behalf.

Youth groups react

In response to federal budget requests which would increase funding once again for abstinence-only sex education, Advocates for Youth has launched two new campaigns domestically and abroad?-the Keep it REAL campaign and the Fix the Gap campaign, which seek to prioritize sex education programs that include information about contraception and the HIV prevention.

"We launched the campaigns for several reasons," Caeden Dempsey, Advocates for Youth's Program Manager, said. "First, to educate the public on the importance of comprehensive sex education, which includes information about both abstinence and contraception. Secondly, to affect policy change; specifically, increase Senate support for the REAL Act, and increase Senate and general House support for global funding of comprehensive HIV prevention education. And finally, to build capacity among young organizers to advocate on their own behalf."

Advocates for Youth, which operates on a premise of Rights, Respect and Responsibility, currently has 15,000 young people nationwide as part of their Youth Activist Network.

"Advocates for Youth believes that all young people have the right to balanced, accurate, and realistic comprehensive sex education and HIV prevention education," Dempsey said. "Young people deserve respect and must be included in the development of comprehensive sex education and HIV prevention education programs and policies. Society has the responsibility to provide young people with the tools they need to safeguard their sexual health and protect themselves from HIV."

Two campaigns for comprehensive sex education launched from that point.

Keep it REAL

In February of 2005, Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) introduced S.368, the Responsible Education About Life (REAL) Act, "a bill to provide assistance to reduce teen pregnancy, HIV/AIDS, and other sexually transmitted diseases and to support healthy adolescent development."

"Senator Lautenberg's bill takes a comprehensive view of sex education to teach not only abstinence, but also the importance of contraceptives, and provides grants to teach both," Alex Formuzis, Communications Director for Senator Lautenberg said.

"The use of contraceptives is a real sticking point with members of the far right," Formuzis explained. "They won't even discuss teaching about contraceptives as part of sex education, but it has to be a part of any comprehensive sex education plan. Period."

In May of 2005, Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA)
http://rawstory.com/news/2005/Teen_groups_push_Congress_for_comprehensive_0223.html