HB 363: Abstinence only proposal is dangerously disconnected - By Logan Froerer

House Bill 363 would strictly limit Utah’s sex health education by restraining discussion of contraception, sex health resources, or homosexuality in Utah schools. Only abstinence could be openly talked about. Districts could even opt out of offering sex health classes altogether if the bill passed.

That type of policy is troubling on its own. More troubling was the fact that teachers and students, those who will be directly affected by this legislation, are not being listened to.

"There's inappropriate curriculum we are teaching," said Bill Wright (R-Holden), the bill’s sponsor, during the committee hearing. “This [sex-ed] is not an important part of our curriculum.”

That belief is terrifyingly out of touch with the reality students face. Human sexuality and health are brutally pertinent and important, and ceasing to talk about them will not make them disappear. Sexuality is so often misrepresented and misunderstood, and preventing teachers from speaking openly about the issues creates a culture of misinformation and secrecy in schools.

The purpose of education should be to expose students to information and ideas, and let them act based on their own personal values. Not to limit information based on our ideologies.

"I think you're silencing and putting fear into teachers," said Representative Carol Spackman Moss (D-Salt Lake City). She was a professional teacher before running for office.

She argued and voted against the bill. So did the other teacher on the House Standing Committee on Education, Marie Poulson (D-Salt Lake City).

“Why is it ok for us to supersede the elected school board officials and dictate curriculum in their area?” she asked. “What about high school counselors? Would we limit discussion? That's the language in the bill.”

From the student perspective, one student from West High spoke alongside her mother against the bill and in favor of much more in depth sexual education even than we have right now.

She was the only person under the age of twenty whose voice was heard as part of the decision making process.

Lest you think that those students and teachers who lobbied in committee are simply partisan ideologues, other teachers felt exactly the same way.

“Kids need to know what their options are,” said Patti Hendricks, a teacher from Sunset Bridge Middle School in West Jordan, who was at the capitol last week with the Utah Education Association.

Allowing districts to opt out entirely of sex education classes would mean thousands of kids would have no idea what type of options and advice are available to them.

“It should be the school’s job to present facts,” added Kathryn Welch, a former teacher from Jordan School District, also at the capitol with the UEA. “The family can take their values and apply them,” she noted, “but it’s not the place of schools to indoctrinate kids on what’s right and what isn’t.”

Let’s summarize what we’ve learned.

This bill will affect teachers and students, and most teachers and students oppose it.

In a sane and rational world, the bill would die based on that alone.

But a Legislature where the voices of the Eagle Forum, the Sutherland Institute, and entrenched ideologies drown out the voices that will actually be affected is hardly sane and rational.

On a good day, it's hypocritical and disconnected. Right now it's threatening students’ well being.

Legislators who have so often preached about the need for less government control have no problem mandating what cannot be talked about. Our leaders clearly do not trust students or teachers enough decide what discussions should happen.

And that contradicts the painfully obvious need for complete open discussion.

49 percent of teenage mothers aged 15-17 in Utah thought that they could not get pregnant when they conceived, and a shocking 24 percent thought that they or their partner was sterile, according to a study conducted for the Center for Disease Control and reported by The Salt Lake Tribune.

22 percent of those mothers stated that they had a hard time getting birth control.

Yet Governor Gary Herbert was quoted in The Tribune before the first committee meeting on the bill as saying "I think how we have it right now works pretty well."

If that's our state's definition of education that "works pretty well," we're in serious trouble.

Sex Education Bill Stalls in Committee, by Nelson Medina

Are teachers telling their students everything they need to know about sex?

Some people believe that teaching students abstinence is the answer. Others think that students should know that facts--they do not think that telling students that they should wait until marriage to have sexual intercourse is effective. Students are not always informed about being safe and using contraceptives, and because of that, Utah has high rates of sexually transmitted diseases such as Chlamydia and Gonorrhea, which are usually transmitted during sex.

So, is the answer to make contraceptives a required part of the Utah reproductive education curriculum? That is what Senate Bill 54 suggested before reaching a standstill in committee, without even a vote. This bill, titled "Health Education Amendments," would modify the requirements in health classes. A general discussion of contraceptives with its benefits and limitations would be included in selected instructional materials about human reproduction. But some people thought this would liberalize the system, reported The Salt Lake Tribune.

Bill sponsor Senator Stephen H. Urquhart (R-St. George) told me that he thinks the committee didn’t fully understand the bill. He said fear and uncertainty were getting in the way of some legislators even being able to talk about the bill. His reason for sponsoring the bill was for the benefit of clarifying the health education curriculum. Previously, Sen. Urquhart had been involved in the Expedited Partner Therapy Treatment bill, which really opened his eyes to how much disease there is in Utah. He said he thought Utah was doing something wrong in health education. Sen. Urquhart found out that not all teachers teach contraceptives because they think it is illegal. His goal with SB54 was to clarify the curriculum and unify what is taught in the classrooms.

I also spoke with Emma Waitzman, a senior at my school, West High. She is very involved in the process at the legislature and lobbying for better sex education. Emma believes that students have the right to learn about sex. She was surprised when speaking to different people at the committee hearing of SB54 because of how uninformed they were. Emma told me that some people said things that were completely untrue about the bill because they were ignorant and did not take the time to understand what the bill would really do for students. Emma and group members are holding a protest on Saturday, March 6, to speak out on this issue.

A similar bill to SB54 is HB127 sponsored by Representative Lynn N. Hemingway (D-Salt Lake) but the bill has not even been assigned to a committee. Although there's only about a week left of the session, we hope this bill makes it through.