Blog #4

Many interesting topics were covered during the sex education talk about contraceptive options and STD’s that we had in class on Wednesday. What I found the most interesting out of all the things we talked about was that a huge portion of the talk was not actually about sex, but rather talking about human sexuality, and what it means, especially areas of which do not directly involve sex. Another thing that I found very interesting as well was that in Georgia, all the schools many of the schools are allowed to teach a comprehensive sex education, but that instead of doing that, each school board makes their own agenda, which more often than less ends up being an abstinence only program. Finally, the last thing that the speaker discussed that I thought was very interesting was the part about the laws concerning minors, especially girls, when it comes to going and getting treated at clinics. Planned Parenthood, on the behalf of which the speaker was speaking, lobbies the government in order to pass or retain laws that allow teenagers to make their own choices when it comes to having sex as well as the treatments they receive afterwards. What amazed me is that the government is trying to pass laws that make it harder for teenagers to receive these types of treatments by trying to make parental notification mandatory. What the government seems to not realize is that if they do this, they are going to increase the number of unwanted pregnancies, which is going to lead to more poverty, which leads to more crime…
This sex education talk directly intersects with the ideas, issues, and thoughts that were discussed during the viewing and our class discussion of The Education of Shelby Knox. The ideologies of Planned Parenthood of Georgia when it comes to sex education very closely parallel those of Shelby Knox. The documentary of Shelby Knox discusses the abstinence only sex education program that is present in most of the schools all across the United States. She discusses how it is flawed in that discussing sex only encourages teenagers to have sex, and doesn’t teach them how to have safe sexual practices. Planned Parenthood is also against this type of sex education because if teenagers decide to have sex even after having these sex education talks, then they are often very ignorant of the types of diseases out there, as well as what they can do to prevent them as much as possible.
Another thing that Shelby Knox discusses in her documentary is sex between non-heterosexual couples—gays and lesbians. She strongly believes in the universal right to know safer sex practices as well as the universal right to treatment when necessary. In the current sex education taught in schools, gays, lesbians, and bisexuals are completely ignored. Planned Parenthood knows that gays and lesbians, especially gays have a wide range of STD’s that affect them as well, the most serious of them being AIDS. They also include the sexuality and safe practices of gays and lesbians in their talks so they educate everyone, not just the majority of people. They also commonly treat gays and lesbians when they come in to their clinics.
This talk by Planned Parenthood of Georgia was the first time I have had a non-abstinence sex education class. Although I strongly believe in abstinence till marriage, I believe that it is up to every person to make that decision, and that there are many couples who are not going to make the same decision as me. If feel very strongly that the government needs to stop the abstinence only program, and begin to move towards a comprehensive sex program, which will continue to support abstinence, and will spend most of its time discussing this, but will also cover safe sex practices, when it comes to preventing pregnancies as well as STD’s. It is important for teenagers to know how protect themselves as well as how to have sex without becoming pregnant in the process, and the current education system does not provide them with this vital information. As long as our government doesn’t change to a comprehensive sex program, they are to be held accountable for a large majority of the unwanted pregnancies in this country.