The Barmaiden

Abstinence Plus!!!

Texas—home of the third-highest teen pregnancy rates in the country, the highest rate of “repeat teen births,” and highest state spending on abstinence-only sex edumacation—is “moving away” from abstinence-only sex ed because it isn’t working. But realists in Texas aren’t ready to let go of the “abstinence” brand entirely, as that might excite the Jesus freaks, so the new, reality-based approach to sex-ed in Texas is called “abstinence-plus.”

Both approaches to sex education teach that refraining from sexual activity is the safest choice for teens. But abstinence-only gives limited information about contraceptives and condoms and tends to downplay their effectiveness, while abstinence-plus stresses the importance of using such protection if teens are sexually active.

The latter approach fits the Obama administration’s effort to shift dollars from abstinence promotion to strategies aimed at lowering teen pregnancies.

What the Statesman means by “tends to downplay their effectiveness,” of course, is “lies to young people about the effectiveness of condoms and contraceptives, often with disastrous consequences.” Via ThinkProgress.