Madeleine Albright said, “Engagement does not mean endorsement.” I happen to agree with that. We, as women, can engage and discuss without saying that whatever we are discussing is right or wrong. We can talk about something without giving permission for someone to go out and do it.
I was reading and article today about teens and sexuality. It would appear that, in the US, the teen pregnancy rates are up, (again) and that the use of birth control is down. Somewhere, teens have gotten the idea that the "rhythm method" of birth control is just as effective as condoms.
Oh, joy. While, as a Doula, that means that there is a good chance I'll be getting more business, it's really business I can do without. I don't consider this good news at all. I had my first child at eighteen, and it was hard. I don't recommend it for anyone else, and I can't even imagine being younger and having a child.
So, how do we change this perception? What do we need to do in order to change this trend, and reverse these rates? It's a very simple answer, and one that many in the US oppose.
Education and access to reliable birth control.
Now, here's the sticky wicket, and where we lose many people, most of them Conservatives. They believe that sex education belongs in the home, and they don't want the public education system involved in it. I can see the point of that argument. I see where it's the best way to proceed with this problem. There is a bigger problem, though, Most people don't educate their children at home. It simply doesn't happen. I can't say it any clearer than that.
We have to ensure that the playing field is level. We have to ensure that young men and women are learning the basic facts they need to make and informed decision. To do any less is doing our young people and immense disservice. It's sending them into the world without a basis in fact, and a way to make decisions, and determine for themselves what they want to do. Would you advocate sending your teenage daughter or son out into the world without knowing how to read? That's what we're doing.
We are sending people out, telling them to form bonds, make attachments, and have relationships, and they are functionally illiterate in the matters of love and sex. They don't know the difference between love and sex because we never teach them that there is a difference, much less what the difference is. We don't teach them the basic respect for themselves and each other that lead to good relationships. We don't teach them, that if you don't know someone well enough to talk about sex, then you shouldn't be having sex.
If we don't trust our kids to be making these decisions, why don't we? Mostly because we know they are ignorant, and we are afraid that if we gives them facts, we are also giving them permission. That sounds crazy to me. After all, are we giving them permission when we keep them ignorant? They're doing it anyway.
No comments:
Post a Comment