COLUMN: Public schools need sex education programs
We cannot mask facts of life with the notion of a non-existent utopia where all teens blindly accept abstinence as the one and only option for sexual behavior.
Refraining from teaching sexual education or presenting a stratified, partial-picture version of sexual education to high school students is promoting ignorance. It is a stepping stone toward uneducated teenage heartache. It is time to wake up to reality and power the wheels of progressive legislation.
Last Wednesday, the Utah House of Representatives passed HB363, a bill concerning sexual education in Utah public schools. All 17 Democrats and 11 Republicans in the House voted against the bill, but lost by a sweeping 45-28 margin. This bill allows Utah schools to opt out of teaching sexual education and prohibits teaching about the use of contraception in schools that do choose to keep the courses. Not only is this bill a step backward in a society that is sexually rampant, but is also an invitation for teens to explore sex in unreliable ways without any previous knowledge of safety precautions.
Anyone who went to public high school in Utah know that teens are just as susceptible to explore sexuality compared to teens in other states — despite parents’ perceptions of their teens’ sex lives.
Some legislators argued that sexual education is a topic that should be addressed in the home. As nice as that sounds, the harsh reality is in many homes the topic is so taboo that kids either resort to the Internet, a piecemeal explanation from friends, or explore sexuality with another ignorant teenager. Though I agree it would be ideal if parents taught sexual education to their children, it does not always happen this way. Why would we opt for this when schools have the resources to provide sexual education with sound information?
Having sat through multiple heart-felt discussions with loved ones, as well as strangers, who faced traumatic mental and physical consequences due to poor sexual educations, I have seen more negative than positive consequences from dismissing these programs. These discussions were often with people who grew up in Utah and were not taught sexual education in their homes. Many of these people referenced a curiosity to experiment, ending up in situations of pregnancy and STDs, as well as mental trauma from cultural guilt after choosing a path opposite that of the majority vote — as evidenced by the House who believe in teaching abstinence.
With the recent heated national discussions concerning access to birth control, we have seen men testifying and claiming to have the answers women’s health issues. If the case was reversed and women were testifying about men’s health this wouldn’t be tolerated. In a recent House hearing concerning the Obama Administration’s new regulation requiring employers and insurers to provide contraception coverage to employees, members of the GOP claimed this is not an issue relating to women’s health, but rather an issue of freedom of religion and therefore did not include women in the panel of testimonies. Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) did not allow a female college student to testify in committee because in his view, she was not an appropriate witness. The first panel of witnesses was composed entirely of male religious leaders against the measure. Is this how we define democracy?
My focus is not arguing women’s issues, but this same error is being made in regards to high school students in Utah. Deciding sexual education measures without the opinion of students is like deciding women’s health issues without the opinion of women. Yes, most students in high school are not of voting age. But this does not mean legislation that greatly influences, not only their high school career, but also their entire adult life, should set aside students’ opinions. Legislators should talk to college students about how the sexual education they received in high school did or did not benefit them in college. They should also talk to high school students and gain perceptive insight into their needs and concerns — not just their parents’ needs and concerns.
In this day and age that has unlimited information via the Internet, it is idiocy to assume high school students who have questions regarding sex, sexual health and contraceptives, will not do a quick Google search and find the information available there. While some of the information they find could be true, much of it is untrue. It is imperative that credible, trusted individuals teach students every option available to maintain sexual health and practice safe sex. Abstinence is a fantastic place to start, but assuming that students will not seek other options on their own, or blindly experiment without protection, makes our state leaders misinformed. If students want to have sex they will have sex, whether it is protected or not. Legislators and parents need to wake up to the facts that despite their wishes, teens do not always comply with their parents’ plans for them.
As USU students, we should care about this legislation because a significant portion of our student body grew up in Utah and was educated in Utah public high schools. An ignorant freshman class away from parents and home for the first time will have endless questions and available options for sexual experimentation. These forms of experimentation will lead to other serious problems, such as rape and sexual assault, STDs and will aslo open doors to a higher vulnerability of abuse. Unfortunately, abstinence alone is simply not enough for curious, sexually charged teenagers. It is time for Utah government officials to open their eyes and move beyond the realm of ignorance.
– Tyra Simmons is a senior majoring in sociology. Her column runs every other Wednesday. Comments on her column can be sent to tyrasimmons@gmail.com.