Congress may deny abstinence grants yet fund programs that promote sex to teens
Contact: Jennifer Fedor, Concerned Women for America, 202-488-7000 ext. 126
WASHINGTON, June 4 /Christian Newswire/ -- Advocates of sex education programs that promote sexual activity may soon get Congress to de-fund their competition, abstinence programs. Title V, the $50 million abstinence education grant will expire on June 30, 2007 unless it is reauthorized. Yet a new Zogby poll reveals that 83 percent of parents favor educating their children to wait until they are married to have sex.
“Congress may soon fail to reauthorize funding for abstinence programs, yet will continue to extravagantly fund programs that promote sexual activity that for decades have failed to reduce teen sexual activity, pregnancy, or sexually-transmitted diseases,” stated Wendy Wright, President of Concerned Women for America. “Parents want abstinence education for their kids. Currently, our government spends 12 dollars to promote contraceptives for every 1 dollar spent on abstinence. Letting this authorization expire will show whether congressmen represent parents and good health practices or groups that promote and profit from teen sexual activity.”
“If Title V is not reauthorized before the June 30 deadline, not only will we lose funding for abstinence programs, but just as importantly, the definitions and guidelines that govern all of federal abstinence dollars,” said Shari Rendall, CWA’s Director of Legislation and Public Policy. “Without a clear definition, some groups will exploit the word ‘abstinence’ for programs that promote sexual activity, in order to fool parents.”
“Opponents of abstinence education point to faulty studies of no-longer used programs with minimal involvement to claim that all abstinence programs do not work. Abstinence education should begin early and be continuously reinforced all through adolescence,” stated Wendy Wright. “While criticizing splinters in abstinence programs, opponents ignore the log in their own eyes of the failure of sex-promoting programs to reduce teen sexual activity, pregnancies and sexually-transmitted diseases.”
Concerned Women for America is the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization.
