PushBack RoundUp #3

We’ve been busy, busy, busy recently - too busy to blog, in fact!  What have we been up to, you ask?  I thought we’d do a quick RoundUp to keep you in the loop.

The United States Congress has recently moved to eliminate funding for evidence-based teen pregnancy prevention programs.  This funding cut would be hugely detrimental to community-based prevention efforts that work to improve the sexual health of youth and communities.  Want to do something about it?  The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy has put together a few quick tips on contacting your policymakers.  Call them today - this is vitally important!  We’ll be keeping you updated, so stay tuned!

But on to more promising news… Boston high school students have formed a coalition called the Hyde Square Task force, organizing for comprehensive sex education and condom accessibility in Boston Public Schools.  The city council hearing called by Councilor Ayanna Pressley is this afternoon, February 15, at 3pm.  If you can’t make the hearing, you can follow us on Twitter for updates or watch online.

Even though the hearing hasn’t happened yet, there’s already beend a lot of press coverage!

The Boston Herald writes:

At-large City Councilor Ayanna Pressley said alarming teen pregnancy and STD statistics are driving the conversation. More than half of Boston high schoolers are having sex, and 34 percent had sex before age 14, according to a 2009 study. In addition, more and more teens are testing positive for STDs.

Opponents of wider condom distribution say BPS should focus on abstinence.  “Condoms are not the solution,” said Chris Pham, a member of the Boston chapter of Pure In Heart, a Catholic chastity group. “Teens are being misled into believing that they can strap on a condom, have sex with whomever, and be safe.”

The effort is not just about condoms, said Patricia Quinn, director of the Massachusetts Alliance on Teen Pregnancy. Boston schools are sorely lacking consistent, comprehensive sex education, she said.  “It’s school-by-school. That makes it somewhat haphazard in terms of what kind of sex ed you can count on your child getting,” she said.

Executive Director Patricia Quinn has also been interviewing the Fox25 News in Boston - watch her explain why these efforts are so, so important: “Let’s Talk about Sex” and “Push for Condoms in Boston Schools.”

Tricia’s not the only one doing television interviews recently - our very own bloggers Natasha and Alexandra were interviewed on BNN’s Parenting in Action.  You can now watch “Parenting Young: Part 1” online!

Also, young mother (and, as of later this week, official PushBack-guest-blogger) Tracy Engelbrecht is selling copies of her book “The Girl Who Couldn’t Say No” to raise money for her young moms’ support group in South Africa.  Read more on “The Empty Jar” - and then buy a copy to help her fill the jar!