The Puzzle of David Obey
Articles about Abstinence
Dr. Green is an Honorable Man
Patrick McIlheran, a conservative columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, startled me with a ‘quick hit’ that was printed in the Easter Sunday edition. The columnist trumpets a letter to the Washington Post by Harvard School of Public Health HIV/Aids researcher, Edward Green, where, according to McIlheran, Green said: “The pope is correct.” Katherine Kersten, blogging for the Minneapolis Star-Tribune also is amplifying Green’s assertion that current evidence on condom use in Africa supports the Pope’s position. My thoughts are: “Get ready, there’s a whole lot more where that came from and there will be a lot more for a long time.”
Virginity Pledges Do Not Work, Yet Another Study Confirms
(from the Guttmacher Institute)
Teens who take “virginity pledges” are just as likely to have sex as those who do not, and they are less likely to use condoms or other forms of contraception when they become sexually active, according to an analysis in the January 2009 issue of the peer-reviewed journal Pediatrics. Because virginity pledge programs do not reduce the number of young people becoming sexually active, the number of pledgers they enlist should not be used to measure the effectiveness of abstinence-only sex education programs, the study concludes. Continue reading this article »
Right Conscience – Conscience Rights
As the fable goes, an eagle is brought to earth by an arrow fletched with his own feathers.
Listening to the spokesperson for Pro-Life Wisconsin as he defended the new ‘right of conscience’ regulations on Wisconsin Public Radio last week reminded me of the wisdom of the tale.
Continue reading this article »
MAJOR REVIEW FINDS NO EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT FUNDING OF RIGID ABSTINENCE-ONLY PROGRAMS
[Editors Note: From time to time we receive email updates from organiztions. This one comes to us from the Guttmacher Institute. We thought it was significant in scope, and wanted to pass it along in its entirety.]
Special Journal Issue Examines Broad Range of Problems
Associated with Abstinence-Only Education
Most abstinence-only programs of the type that have received $1.5 billion in federal funding do not help teens delay initiation of sex, and there is no scientific evidence to warrant their widespread use, according to a major new review of sexuality education program evaluations by Douglas B. Kirby. In contrast, many comprehensive sex education programs, which emphasize both abstinence and the use of protection for those who do have sex, were found to have a positive impact and should be replicated more widely. The study concludes that a comprehensive approach to sex education is effective and does not send a confusing message to young people.
The new review is part of a series of articles that identify major flaws in abstinence-only education, including problems with accuracy, effectiveness and ethics, all publish
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SIECUS Releases Report on Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs in Kentucky
Millions of Dollars to Failed Programs and Crisis Pregnancy Centers
New York, NY – Today, the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) released a special report on abstinence-only-until-marriage programs in Kentucky. The report, which compiles data on the major federal funding sources of abstinence-only-until-marriage programs as well as vital health statistics and outcomes in the state, paints a picture of a state that uses some of the worst, fear-based abstinence-only-until-marriage curricula and lags behind national averages on many important adolescent indicators related to teen pregnancy and STDs.
U.S. Abstinence-Only Policy Panel Discussion
Silencing Sex Ed: The Harm of at Home and Abroad
Legal Momentum, the nation’s oldest legal advocacy organization dedicated to advancing the rights of women, and our colleagues at Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) and Center for Health and Gender Equity (CHANGE), present a panel discussion about the harms of abstinence-only programs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison on April 23, from 4:30-6:00 pm in TITU in Memorial Union and the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point on April 24, from 5:30-7:30 pm in the Founders Room. The program will expose how the federal government uses abstinence-only funding to fuel programs full of misinformation, sexist stereotypes and extreme right-wing ideology that aim to roll back sexual and reproductive rights. We will highlight the attack on women’s rights and sexuality both in the US and as exported via conditions on US funding, with particular attention given to the human rights implications of abstinence-only policies. Continue reading this article »
