Bad Ass Feminist: Jane Fonda

Jane Fonda is a pretty unbelievable woman and a pretty badass feminist if you ask me.

Not only does she work to end violence against women with VDAY ( Do you remember last year when she said cunt on the Today show and the world freaked out? Priceless.) but did you know that she is also the founder and chairwoman of the Georgia Campaign for Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention. Amazing!

This week she authored an editorial in the Atlantic Journal Constitution about teen pregnancy that rocked! Below are my favorite highlights:

"...Too often, issues of teen sexuality are described in moral terms, especially by politicians who seem to care more about getting headlines than admitting what does and doesn’t work. But here’s what is really immoral: leaving in place unrealistic ideas and ineffective programs that don’t address the serious problem of teen pregnancy, one whose impact will be felt well into the future...."

"It’s misguided to focus exclusively on abstinence-only-until-marriage programs, which have been shown repeatedly, and over time, to be ineffective. All of us should do everything we can to persuade our elected officials to reverse this failed policy.

Let me be clear: I’m not against abstinence. Deciding to wait to have sex is a smart choice for young people. But I wasn’t born yesterday, and I know many teens are going to have sex, like it or not. Given this reality, it’s not the “abstinence” that’s the problem. It’s the 'only.'"

Jane Fonda, you just get it. Amen sister!

Read Jane Fonda's editorial in full >

Check out Jane Fonda on Larry King Live >

Check out Jane Fonda performing the Vagina Monoglogues >

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National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy

Today, as we recognize the National Day to Prevent Teen Pregnancy we are reminded all too well of statistics that reveal that the teen birth rate is on the rise:

• 3 out of 10 American teens get pregnant every year
  
• Less than half of these girls finish high school
  
• 8 out of 10 don't marry the fathers of their babies
  

This morning on "Good Morning America" Bristol Palin did her first live TV interview where she advocated and promoted abstinence as the "best" choice for young women. A new teen ambassador for the Candie's Foundation, Bristol's message today is very different from comments she previously made on Fox news. that abstinence was "unrealistic." Today she says her comments were taken out of context and that she believes young women should abstain from sex regardless of what she did personally.

Personally, I disagree. I think if we are going to have any crack at reducing the escalating teen pregnancy rates we are going to have to provide teenagers with comprehensive sex education that teaches them both about abstinence and contraception. We need to power teenagers with knowledge so if and when they do decide to have sex (which many of them do) they have the tools (condoms, birth control, emergency contraception, etc) to avoid an unplanned pregnancy.

Another thing - when I saw that Bristol was a teen ambassador for the Candie's Foundation I had to look it up because I was certain it wasn't the same Candie's that sells sexy shoes to young women but alas I was wrong. It is that Candies and if you take a look at the website and you will instantly see that sex (although teens shouldn't be doing it, right?) sells! They currently have a promotion with Britney Spears - a single young unwed mother whose famous sister is a teen mom herself - where she is pictured with a bikini top and suggestive smile and nothing else. So the message is that you can dress sexy and be sexy but you shouldn't think about sex let alone have sex and if you do, well Candie's is there to tell you all about the "devastating consequences" but not to help you avoid them - nope you're on your own there.

Don't get me wrong. I think it is admirable that Candie's wants to do its part to help reduce teen pregnancy and clever that they are using a celebrity hook to talk to teens BUT while they aim to raise awareness of this serious problem, they fail to give these teens the tools to avoid the very problem - getting pregnant. Someone has too so if you have any teens in your life I suggest you take some time today to talk to them about sex and teach them how to protect themselves!

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What's the matter with Texas?

I’m sure happy I’m not a teen living in Texas! If I was I might think that condoms are ineffective or that I could get HIV/AIDS from tears or sweat.

Research from the Texas Freedom Network reveals that an overwhelming amount of Texas schools use “scare tactics and spread myths” instead of teaching accurate health information that students could use to protect themselves and their partners.

The results of the schools included in the sample are startling:

• 41% of school district’s sex education materials include factual errors
• 41% of errors are regarding condoms; 38.9% regarding STDs
• 81% of districts receive NO formal recommendations on sex ed from state-mandated local advisory councils.

This is all sorts of wrong! First, I don’t get the whole abstinence-only education thing. I mean yes in an ideal world abstinence would be, well, ideal but we don’t live in an ideal world do we? No. We don’t. And second, sex is a natural (and might I add fun!) part of life. It’s natural for teens to be curious and experiment, especially when their hormones and bodies are changing.

That is not to say that sex doesn’t have consequences. Of course it does. We all know that which is why it is so important to equip teens with information to prevent these consequences (pregnancy, STDS, HIV/AIDS). Shaming students, scaring them, or worst off, giving them wrong information isn’t going to stop them from having sex. It’s just going to create more young pregnant mothers (if anyone has a greater chance of getting pregnant accidently, it’s misinformed teens who are experimenting) and more teens carrying STDs and spreading them because they don’t know otherwise.

And guess what? I’m right! These tactics don’t work. Texas continues to have one of the nation’s highest teen pregnancy rates despite receiving more federal abstinence funding than any other state! Wasted money and lots of confused and shamed teens!

Texas – get your act together!

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From A-Z’s to the Birds & the Bees

In the U.S. President Bush proposes that funding for abstinence-only programs reach $270 million by 2009 (could January come any sooner?). This is an enormous amount of taxpayer funds to support programs that have been scientifically proven ineffective. To date 16 states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming) have declined funding for such programs, yet the government’s position on the issue remains the same: abstinence-only education is here to stay.

Meanwhile in the UK, the British government is bringing sex education to schools starting as soon as kindergarten! That’s right - along with learning how to read, write, and share, kindergartens in the UK will be introduced to reproduction as part of their science curriculum. Requirements as to what the lessons will specifically entail haven’t been released yet, but we do know that schools will be asked to cover age-appropriate discussions on relationships and contraception in their lesson plans. By 11 students will be taught about developing respectful relationships and how risky sexual behavior can lead to STDs and unplanned pregnancies.

I could not be more thrilled at this prospect! The sooner we begin introducing comprehensive sex education the better off we will all be! Sex is a natural part of life and everyone has a right to live a safe sexually fulfilling life at any age. This isn’t to say that I’m an advocate of kindergarteners having sex (Um no!) but I think we all too often forget that young women have the right to control their bodies and get the information necessary to make safe and healthy decisions. By remaining silent on the topic or, worse yet, delivering inaccurate information (abstinence-only programs teach that condoms don’t prevent HIV, touching someone’s genitals can cause pregnancy, having an abortion will make you infertile) we are putting young women at incredible risk. In a time when teen pregnancy rates are on the rise and the economy is in shambles, we cannot afford to waste another minute or dollar on ineffective and inaccurate abstinence-only programs.

What will it take to get government mandated comprehensive sex education in the U.S.?

For more info check out: http://www.aclu.org/reproductiverights/sexed/12604res20080612.html

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