The Legal Case Against Abstinence-Only Miseducation is Growing

April 26, 2007 at 9:13 pm (politics) ()

And for good reason. From RH Reality Check:

Citing “several federally funded abstinence-only-until-marriage programs that include medically inaccurate information in violation of federal law” the ACLU, Adovcates for Youth and SIECUS today put the Bush Administration on notice: comply with the law or be prepared to go to court in 30 days.

A nine-page letter notifies Secretary of Health and Human Services Micahel O. Leavitt of violations of federal statutes that require medically accurate information. Listing numerous abstinence-only documents, web sites and teachings published with taxpayer dollars that contain blatantly false and medically inaccurate information, the letter challenges HHS to change the abstinence-only materials or be forced to by the courts.

“This is not the first time HHS has been asked to address serious problems in federally funded abstinence-only-until-marriage programs,” said Julie Sternberg, Senior Staff Attorney with the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project and author of today’s letter. “The federal government’s insistence on putting ideology before teenagers’ health has to stop.”

“HHS cannot justify giving teens incomplete and misleading information about how to protect themselves against unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection, including HIV,” said John Santelli, MD, MPH, Chair of the Heilbrunn Department of Population and Family Health at Columbia University and the author of a 20-page declaration enumerating the medical inaccuracies in the federal programs. The declaration accompanied today’s letter.

Comprehensive sex education is necessary for a just, informed, healthy, and responsible society. Tax paying citizens should be insulted and outraged to see their money used to pay for the opposite (and so should everyone, for that matter).

4 Comments

  1. ryan said,

    May 7, 2007 at 11:57 am

    i think abstinence is the dumbest thing ever. teens should be able to do it wenever they want. Abstinence is from the bible and the bible is fake. Therefore abstinence should just be taken out of teh whole world and the bible should be burned

  2. Daisy said,

    May 7, 2007 at 9:39 pm

    You know Ryan, abstinence isn’t even in the Bible — it’s just in conservatives’ lazy heads.

  3. Skyler said,

    May 17, 2007 at 10:10 am

    umm i think abstinence does come from the bible because God wants everyone to have something special with their spouse…yet teens learn from their mistakes and no one is expected to stay a virgin until they are married its their choice..teens should take precautions though because no one is perfect and temptation is a killer

  4. Daisy said,

    May 17, 2007 at 8:18 pm

    umm i think abstinence does come from the bible because God wants everyone to have something special with their spouse

    Oh wow, where does the Bible say that? Somewhere between the rape and the polygamy, I’d imagine?

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