Sex Education Curtailed at the Local Level

Back to school time is here, and our children are gathering to be taught some of life’s most valuable lessons. But, unfortunately, for many teens and pre-teens in more rural and conservative areas, that means an omission of comprehensive science-based sex education. Why does that matter?

Sex education is at the forefront of community health and quality of life. Our kids have the right to be taught about their bodily autonomy from a biological perspective, regardless of what their local school board thinks.

Some quick statistics to consider:

• Young people ages 15-24 make up 25% of the sexually active population but acquire half of all new STD/STI cases a year.
• In 2017, about 21% of new HIV diagnoses were among 13–24-year-olds.
• As of October 2020, only 30 states and the District of Colombia require public schools to teach sex education (only 28 of those states include HIV education).
• Only 50% of teen mothers receive a high-school diploma by the age of 22 years old, compared to 90% of those that aren’t teen mothers.

The National Association of School Nurses researched the United States’ sexual education system. They found that with evidence-based, comprehensive sex ed, we can improve academic success, prevent sexual violence and bullying, reduce teen pregnancy and STIs, reduce health disparities among LGBTQ youth, and delay sexual initiation.

There is no reason for conservatives to be advocating against sex education; nevertheless, across our country this summer, they gathered at school board meetings to oppose improvements for children’s sexual health curriculum. How can one call themselves a defender of our youth’s health yet continue perpetuating abstinence-only ideals that do not teach kids to make well-educated and safe decisions while their sexuality develops?

This issue directly affects the health and wellbeing of our communities. Educating our kids on consent, how to make decisions with applicable information, and preventing teen pregnancy & STI/STDs should be at the forefront of our education system. These are issues that will affect an individual’s life for decades, and students should be aware of that.

You may be asking yourself how this relates to what we do at Rideshare2Vote.

Elections matter year-round because topics like this are up for debate in many of our communities, and school curriculum changes year to year. It is imperative that we elect officials at the local level to advocate for these issues, so we can make lasting impacts on our children’s lives. Rideshare2Vote is gearing up to power the polls this November.

We want individuals to see the importance of small elections like school boards and other municipal races; more importantly, we want to see a higher turnout from low-propensity voters. We are counting on donations to make this November election cycle great. Then, it’s up to us to create the culture we want to see. This is how we start.

by Taryn Rayburn