Abstinence Only Sex Education

What’s the issue? Trump’s proposed 2018 budget invests $277 million in abstinence-only sex education, while also cutting funding for Planned Parenthood. Pence is also a supporter of abstinence-only sex education, and once claimed that “frankly, condoms are a very, very poor protection against sexually transmitted diseases.” In July, the Trump Administration abruptly ended funding for the Heath and Human Services’ evidence-based Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program.

Why do I care? Abstinence only sex education doesn’t work. The United States has the highest rates of adolescent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections in the among more developed countries (a teen in the Mississippi, for example, is 15 times more likely to give birth than her counterpart in Switzerland). Additionally, regional and racial disparities exist in the United States, with Hispanic, black, and Native American/Alaskan teens more likely to give birth than whites. As a response, the United States has funneled approximately $2 billion into abstinence only sex education over the past two decades. The results have been disastrous. In fact, a 2011 showed that an emphasis on abstinence only education positively correlated with teen pregnancy. That is, emphasizing abstinence only education was associated with (and possibility caused) high rates of teen pregnancy. The average age that adolescents in the United States first have vaginal intercourse is just over 17, but the average age for marriage is 27 for women and 29 for men. This creates a 10-12 year gap during which most Americans are sexually active and at risk for STIs and unplanned pregnancy, but not married and thus not addressed by abstinence only education programs. Moreover, no sex education program in the United States has ever delayed the age of sexual debut from 17 until marriage. In fact, 95% of Americans have sex before they are married. Nevertheless, Trump appointed Valerie Huber, the president of Ascend, a D.C.-based professional association that advocates for abstinence education, to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Not only does abstinence only education not prevent pregnancy, but it causes other harms for teens who receive it. Abstinence only programs contain scientifically false information (particularly around abortion and contraception) and reinforce gender stereotypes for both girls and boys. Some sex education programs compare a woman who has sex with more than one partner to damaged goods- illustrated by a rose plucked clean of its petals or a wrapped present stomped on repeatedly in class. These comparisons can cause shame for girls who hear this message. Additionally, abstinence only’s focus on monogamous, heterosexual marriage as the only acceptable place for sexual intercourse excludes all who do not fit this narrow definition (and their families). One abstinence only manual states, for example, that “Teens in both one-parent and remarried homes typically display more deviant behavior and commit more delinquent acts than do teens whose parents stayed married.  Studies show that two married, biological parents have the means and the motivation to appropriately monitor and discipline boys in ways that reduce the likelihood that they will pose a threat to the social order.” Another warns teens, “the only safe sex is in a marriage relationship where a man and a woman are faithful to each other for life.” These messages are especially harmful for LGBTQA teens, who are historically underserved by and underrepresented in sex education. In fact, even after the Obama administration required federally funded sex education to be evidence-based, the evidence drawn from did not include LGBTQA youth realities.

What’s more, we know how to prevent teen pregnancy and increase safe sex. The CDC has found that comprehensive sex education, not abstinence only education, actually delays teenage sexual debut (as well as prepares them to have safe sex when they are ready). Meanwhile, teenage pregnancy rates in the United States are at a historic low, but this drop is driven exclusively by increased contraceptive usage. In a well-studied example, Colorado had major success reducing teen pregnancy by increasing the availability of long acting reversible contraception (such as IUDs and implants) for teens. So it is increasing access to information and contraception that holds the key to reducing rates of unplanned pregnancy and STIs (in teens and adults), and paves the way for informed and safe sex lives for all.

What to do if you care too:

1. Call your representatives. Tell them to oppose Trump’s budget cut to the Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program, cuts to Planned Parenthood, and increased funding for abstinence-only education.
2. Donate to Planned Parenthood, an organization that provides comprehensive sexual health services for many teens. You can also donate to the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, so that all people have the information and access they need and have the right to in order to lead healthy sexual lives.
3. Teach children using comprehensive sex education, making sure to include information for different sexual orientations and disabilities. Here are some resources to get you started and here are some specifically for parents.
4. Get involved with your local school board and be an advocate for comprehensive sex education in your school district. Here are some advocacy and policy publications to help.
5. By the way, this is a problem in other countries too. Support NGOs that support access to comprehensive sex education and access to safe sex products and services around the world like Population Services International (yes, my former employer), Marie Stopes International, and DKT International.

Cover image by hiroo yamagata from Flickr. (It’s from Ghana in 2005, but you get the idea.)