Statistical facts on pregnancy rate among teenagers from state highschools have proven that the Abstinence-only programs for sex and health education didn't work, particularly in states where the program is supported and sponsored by the government. The non-working program still being taught in school despite the alerted consequences has indeed shown a rather political decision than medical or health decision. In an attempt to re-create the morality in society, the Christian nationalists have implemented a theoretical conduct which has led the society toward a much more gruesome direction.
Pregnancy among teenagers and STDs contracted rates increased due to the lack of contraception and protective sex education. Despite the fact that Abstinence is the surest way to avoid one hundred percent of the problems caused by sexual activities, it is however impossible to actually convince every teenager not to engage in any sexual activity since the choice is up to them. In fact, students were still becoming parents and contracting STDs according to Jennifer Berghom's article: "Abstinence-only still being taught despite high pregnancy rate" of the Monitor, McAllen, TX. The research for Edcouch-Elsa school district showed an extensively high rate of students who were either going to have a baby or already parents. That alone has brought up the notion for a more comprehensive sex education which would more likely prevent teen pregnancy and STDs contraction in term of truly concerning their medical and health condition rather than the morality of the situation. The negligence of educating teenagers proper use of condoms and contraception as protection from pregnancy and STDs in the abstinence-only program has thus contributed remarkably to the current situation. According to Michelle Goldberg, the application of Abstinence program does succeed in helping kids delay losing their virginity yet the anti-condom message seems to dissuade them from bothering with protection when they do have sex (Goldberg 137). Hence, the consequences it led to has indicated the downside of the condition of society that was ironically supposed to be morally improved by the program itself.
As a strategy of promoting the abstinence program and inflicting it on school education through the support of government, the Christian nationalists has employed the duplication method, "created 'paraprofessional' associations of teachers, doctors, lawyers, and the like,, which mimicked ordinary professional groups in order to erode their legitimacy and eventually replace them" (Goldberg 153). The fact that the organizations established by the force of these evangelical Christians were not meant to provide reliable medical information related to sexual activities to young women but rather to inflict on them the moral doctrine of womanhood through the abstinence program is wrong, both scientifically and morally indeed. By not revealing all the essential scientific facts and exaggerating the ones used to support its claim, the members of these organizations have intensionally distorted the truth and misled the uninformed teen girls or young women. Using scientific claims to navigate a non-scientific belief and create disadvantages to science itself is scientifically askew, keeping the people from knowing the truth they deserve to know is absolute immorality.
The abstinence program is indeed only one of the attempts the evangelical Christian activists made in order to impose their ideological fiction upon the secular society. As clearly as how unethical the affects it has on the society, the continuous support it gets from the government has proved a political employment of a somewhat similar to communist brainwashing method by American democratic system.
References:
Berghom, Jennifer L. "Abstinence-only still being taught despite high pregnancy rates." Monitor, The (McAllen, TX) 18 Oct. 2009: Newspaper Source Plus. EBSCO. Web. 2 Nov. 2009.
Goldberg, Michelle, "Kingdom coming: the rise of Christian Nationalism"
This was the most agrivating subject and reading so far for me. Goldberg's chapter on abstinence had me writing along every margin on every page. How can you expect people to make smart decisions when you are witholding pertinent information from them because it is your belief that they should live their life the way you see fit! I am speaking in terms of what "EDUCATOR" Pam Stenzel had to say on her objection to sex education. This woman is so far blinded by her belief system that she is causing a barricade for American youth to learn facts about sex.
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