Boston Officials Need To Be 'As Brave' As Students Lobbying For Sex Ed, Columnist Writes

"If teens aren't going to get sex education from their parents, and if they aren't going to get it from their schools, then they're going to get it somewhere," including the media or their peers, which can lead to misinformation, according to Boston Globe columnist Joanna Weiss. Sex education in Boston is "haphazard at best," with some teens receiving sex education at school through third party groups like the Boston Public Health Commission," Weiss writes, adding, "But many get nothing, or not nearly enough."

Public health officials say that increased availability of chemical contraceptives has helped teen pregnancy rates drop over that last 10 years. However, chlamydia rate are "rising at alarming rates, a sign that teens don't understand that certain types of birth control -- and certain types of sex -- don't protect you from disease," according to Weiss. "In other words, the burden of contraception falls largely on girls," she notes.

A group of Boston teens from Hyde Square Task Force is "asking for more," Weiss writes, adding that the group is "lobbying for comprehensive sex ed, including information about healthy relationships and, yes, free condoms for all." The group is also lobbying for "a couple of designated adults in every school -- ideally, one male, one female -- who could distribute condoms to kids who ask, without passing judgment," according to Weiss. "The kids are committed; they've put together an honest, funny video that states their case," Weiss writes, adding that if politicians "are willing to be just as brave, we're in good shape."

However, she notes that "this kind of talk makes politicians and the public skittish," so "it's worth reminding everyone of the facts." Weiss notes that close to 70% of Boston teens report having sex by age 18, and about 50% of sexually active teens have had three or more partners by 17. Research into condom distribution programs in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York schools "have shown that making condoms easily available doesn’t increase the number of kids who have sex," Weiss writes, noting that it "merely increases the number of kids who use condoms."

In the Boston area, Deborah Allen, director of the city Public Health Commission's Child and Adolescent Family Health Bureau, and City Councilor Ayanna Pressley note that many parents have been requesting sex education in school because they "understand that kids need all the help they can get, combating a culture that makes sex look cool," Weiss writes. "The music industry isn’t very good at education," she continues, concluding, "That's what schools are for" (Weiss, Boston Globe, 12/12).


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