States just saying no to abstinence-only

From the Los Angeles Times, via boston.com:
States refraining from abstinence-only sex education

LOS ANGELES -- In an emerging revolt against abstinence-only sex education, states are turning down millions of dollars in federal grants, unwilling to accept White House dictates that the money be used for classes focused almost exclusively on teaching chastity.

In Ohio, Governor Ted Strickland said that regardless of the state's sluggish economic picture, he simply did not see the point in taking part in the controversial State Abstinence Education Grant program anymore.

Five other states -- Connecticut, Rhode Island, Montana, New Jersey, and Wisconsin -- have dropped out of the program or plan to do by the end of the year. The program is managed by a unit of the US Department of Heath and Human Service.

( Read more... )

As the LA Times notes,

That states are declining such funding alarms abstinence-only groups, which insist that cutting off this source of revenue will close dozens of nonprofit sex education groups and undermine the progress they have made to fight teen pregnancy and curtail the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

"There are kids who don't want to know how to put on a condom, because they don't want to have sex," said Leslee Unruh, president and chief executive of the South Dakota-based National Abstinence Clearinghouse, the nation's largest network of abstinence educators. "So why can't kids who want to abstain have equal time, funding, and education in the classroom as kids who are having sex?"

I suspect Ms. Unruh's real concern is the danger that the "abstinence-only" movement will wither away if it loses its privileged place suckling on the federal teat. I agree with her that there are youth who don't (currently) want to have sex - but that's no reason not to teach the facts. After all, we teach our youth mathematics (even though most students don't want to be mathematicians), history (even though most students don't want to be historians), home economics (even though most students don't want to cook or clean), etc., etc.

States just saying no to abstinence-only

From the Los Angeles Times, via boston.com:
States refraining from abstinence-only sex education

LOS ANGELES -- In an emerging revolt against abstinence-only sex education, states are turning down millions of dollars in federal grants, unwilling to accept White House dictates that the money be used for classes focused almost exclusively on teaching chastity.

In Ohio, Governor Ted Strickland said that regardless of the state's sluggish economic picture, he simply did not see the point in taking part in the controversial State Abstinence Education Grant program anymore.

Five other states -- Connecticut, Rhode Island, Montana, New Jersey, and Wisconsin -- have dropped out of the program or plan to do by the end of the year. The program is managed by a unit of the US Department of Heath and Human Service.

( Read more... )

As the LA Times notes,

That states are declining such funding alarms abstinence-only groups, which insist that cutting off this source of revenue will close dozens of nonprofit sex education groups and undermine the progress they have made to fight teen pregnancy and curtail the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

"There are kids who don't want to know how to put on a condom, because they don't want to have sex," said Leslee Unruh, president and chief executive of the South Dakota-based National Abstinence Clearinghouse, the nation's largest network of abstinence educators. "So why can't kids who want to abstain have equal time, funding, and education in the classroom as kids who are having sex?"

I suspect Ms. Unruh's real concern is the danger that the "abstinence-only" movement will wither away if it loses its privileged place suckling on the federal teat. I agree with her that there are youth who don't (currently) want to have sex - but that's no reason not to teach the facts. After all, we teach our youth mathematics (even though most students don't want to be mathematicians), history (even though most students don't want to be historians), home economics (even though most students don't want to cook or clean), etc., etc.