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June 2007 update on new publications, actions you can take, and more!
Advocates for Youth's e-News Update
We Are Not Your Pawns!
This summer, Congress is considering a number of bills that directly affect the health and lives of young people throughout the United States and around the world. Thousands of youth all over the country have already taken action to hold lawmakers accountable on these issues, and this critical fight will likely continue through the summer and into the fall.
Unfortunately, politicians in Washington seem to think that there are no consequences to selling out America's youth... But you are proving them wrong!
Together you have sent over 9,000 letters to Congress in the past month alone. If you personally haven't yet taken action, it only takes a few minutes. We need to work together to make sure that Congress knows it's not okay to use youth as pawns in their political game.
Remember: Abstinence-only education censors vital information about your health. It is your right and the right of your peers to have accurate and complete information about sex. By censoring information about contraception, our ability to make informed health decisions is limited.
Thanks and happy protesting!
Caeden Dempsey
Youth Activist Network Program Manager
Take Action
The U.S. House of Representatives proposed an INCREASE in abstinence-only-until-marriage funding by $27.8 million - only weeks after a congressionally mandated report showed again that these programs are a total failure.
Write to your Representative and ask them to oppose continued funding to abstinence-only programs that censor life-saving information about condoms and contraception! Click here: http://capwiz.com/advofy/issues/alert/?alertid=9640346
Here are five tactics you can use to continue telling lawmakers "we are not your pawns".
- Ask your friends to get involved! If you care about these issues, asking your friends to take a stand is probably the single most important thing you can do. This issue affects us all and the more people join together, the greater the impact we will have. Send this link to your friends, or post it on your MySpace or Facebook page: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/youth/advocacy/yan/yan.asp.
- Write a letter to your newspaper. This is easier than it may sound! Writing a letter to the editor about the damaging effects of abstinence-only education is a great way to educate your community about these issues. Click here to learn more: If you need any help writing a letter, email me at caeden@advocatesforyouth.org.
- Hand-write a letter to your members of Congress. It only takes a few minutes, and it shows your members of Congress that you really care! If you have personal experiences with abstinence-only education - or if you had a great experience with comprehensive sex education - this is the place to share those stories! Find the names and addresses of your members of Congress by going to www.congress.org and entering your zip code. We want to get a letter to every member of congress. Email me at caeden@advocatesforyouth.org when you send your letter and help us keep track!
- Tell your parent or teacher to send a letter or email. Often, parents and teachers can be great allies. Ask them to write a letter or send an email to their members of Congress expressing their support for comprehensive sex education and their anger that lawmakers would use youth as pawns in their political games!
- Send Advocates for Youth information about your sex education. When Advocates for Youth speaks to lawmakers on your behalf, it is incredibly helpful for us to have stories about your experiences with abstinence-only education. And we can only tell these stories if you provide them. Email me at caeden@advocatesforyouth.org with your story.
THIS MONTH
For the past few months youth activists and staff from Advocates for Youth have been working with Lifetime Television on the film "Girl, Positive," starring Andrea Bowen ("Desperate Housewives") and Jennie Garth.
Seventeen-year-old Rachel is as stunned as anyone when word spreads through her upper-middle-class community that Jason, a popular athlete who recently died, was an IV drug user. But it's the next bomb that really hits home: Jason, a former intimate partner, may have been HIV positive. Wanting to learn more about HIV, Rachel is urged to visit the local AIDS clinic by a substitute teacher, Sarah. Rachel is too scared to face up to the possibility that she may be infected, so Rachel confides her fears to Sarah, who reveals that she has been secretly living with HIV for more than seven years. Unfortunately, secrets have a way of getting out - and both women soon learn that gossip, like disease, can spread swiftly.
Tune in for the premiere of "Girl, Positive"; on June 25 at 9 pm - and keep an eye out for Advocates' Condom Art Contest posters in a few of the scenes... Thanks again to all the young people who helped the writers make sure this story was as true-to-life as possible!
For more on "Girl, Positive" visit the Lifetime TV website: http://www.lifetimetv.com/movies/originals/girlpositive.php?page=synopsis
June is Pride Month!
During the 1960s, raids on gay bars by police were frequent, violent and sometimes deadly. Though the frequency of police raids began decreasing after the 1950s, they still did occur, and in June of 1969 in New York City, local police raided the gay bar known as the Stonewall Inn.
Enraged, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) bar customers and others people rioted against the police, beginning the event now known as the Stonewall Riots. A year later in 1970, anniversary marches were organized by LGBT groups in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.
In the 1980s, a cultural shift took place in America - these marches began to be planned by organized, less radical members of the community. The events that had previously been intended to commemorate the riots became Pride events which still take place in cities across America and worldwide each June.
The pride events now provide spaces for LGBT people to celebrate their lives.
For a list of pride events by date and location visit http://www.interpride.org/
For information about gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or questioning youth, click here or visit YouthResource, a project of Advocates for Youth.
SAY WHAT?
"We don't want it on our consciences."
Great Falls, Wisconsin - The owners of Snyder Drug decided to phase out the sale of prescription birth control pills at their pharmacy for moral reasons, stating they "don't want it on [their] consciences."
One patient was told her prescription for birth control pills would no longer be filled because hormonal contraception causes abortion. Another was told that oral contraceptives are harmful to women.
Co-owner Kyla Anderson said as pharmacists and business people they realize that there are many medical reasons, not just birth control, to take contraceptives and that they are "not trying to judge anybody." However, they will not fill prescriptions for this legal, FDA-approved medication, no matter what the patient's reason for taking it.
Allyson Hagen, executive director of NARAL Pro-Choice Montana, said she is "surprised and outraged" that Snyder Drug would start denying prescriptions for contraceptives. She said there have been growing reports nationally of pharmacists denying contraceptives, though most have involved Plan B.
Snyder Drug's moral distress is apparently limited to medications women can use to prevent unplanned pregnancy; the pharmacy continues to fill prescriptions for Viagra.
Full story: http://www.greatfallstribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070603/NEWS01/706030302
In The Spotlight
Alejandra is a 23-year-old Oberlin College Class of 2006 alumnus who majored in Hispanic Studies and minored in German. She is currently an intern in the International Division of Advocates for Youth.
I'm involved in activism because I've always been the type to speak my mind and there is no better way to do it than in an educated fashion. I like being surrounded by knowledgeable people who I know will be able to help me learn how to create comfortable environments for people to ask questions, and supply the necessary tools to become informed on issues. Also, knowing that I helped create change for the better on any issue of importance to me is more than enough reason for doing this type of work.
I have found the most challenging part of activism is becoming comfortable in social movements: coming to understand the reasons behind an opposing view and then learning to select the appropriate language to be able to communicate on neutral terms.
Definitely the most rewarding parts are the wonderful people I get to meet, all of the things I learn (regardless of how pleasant or unpleasant they may be), and the feeling of satisfaction I get when I see the hard work paying off.
I currently intern at Advocates for Youth. My main job is to work on the Ambiente Joven web site, which focuses on GLBTQ youth in Latin America. I'm updating materials on the site as well as writing new features. I will also be compiling a new list of resources for readers of the site.
I have also just recently become involved with Women Deliver Youth, a group that focuses on ensuring that youth issues are integrated and addressed in the Women Deliver conference on maternal health issues coming up in the fall.
In the future, I'm hoping to get accepted to Kent State University's Masters in Translation and Interpretation (MATI) program in the spring for Spanish to English/English to Spanish translation. I plan to either continue at Kent or head out to the University of Vienna for a degree in German to English/English to German translation. All of this will eventually lead to a Ph. D. and learning at least five other languages to satisfy my insatiable need for new ways of communication, and to create a way for me to achieve my ultimate goal of becoming a translator in the wonderful field of media and entertainment.
Read All About It
Walk in My Shoes: A Black Activist's Guide to Surviving the Women's Movement
Walk in My Shoes is a collection of inspirational essays to empower young African American women to become involved in the fight for reproductive justice. Written by Marcela Howell, Advocates' Vice President of Communications, Walk in My Shoes draws on the author's 30-plus years of experience as a Black woman working in the reproductive rights movement. The essays examine the history of African American women in the women's rights movement and provide guidance for young African American activists on: avoiding the pitfalls of becoming the black "expert" in white women's organizations; knowing when and how to assert leadership; building a support base; and setting goals to diversify the movement to meet every woman's needs.
Adolescents: Missing from Programs for the World's Orphans and Vulnerable Children
Worldwide, as many as 15 million children and youth have been orphaned or made vulnerable by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. In addition, parental deaths from all causes have left 143 million orphaned children and youth across 93 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and Latin America, including 79 million ages 12 through 17. As orphans approach sexual and physical maturation, they are at increased risk of HIV. Their orphaned and vulnerable status can also leave them more vulnerable to sexual abuse, exploitation, illness, and homelessness. Many engage in risky sexual behaviors in order to survive.
Adolescent Maternal Mortality: An Overlooked Crisis
Maternal mortality statistics underscore how societies have failed women, especially young women in developing countries. As many as 529,000 women die each year from complications of pregnancy and childbirth. Pregnancy is the leading cause of death for young women ages 15 through 19.The reproductive health of adolescent women depends on biological, social, and economic factors. Programs must provide education, family planning services, and pre- and postnatal care to reduce morbidity and mortality among young women.
On the Town
LGBT YOUTH! SPEAK OUT ABOUT YOUR SCHOOL EXPERIENCES!
Help GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) inform education policymakers and the public about what's really going on in our nation's schools by completing the 2007 National School Climate Survey, GLSEN's fifth national survey about the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students in school. The National School Climate Survey documents the problem of anti-LGBT bias in K-12 schools across the nation.
If you attended high school or middle school sometime during the 2006-2007 school year and are at least 13 years old, tell us about your experiences in school. (If you did not complete the entire school year you are still eligible.) The survey is completely anonymous.
For more info and to complete the survey online, visit: http://www.glsen.org/2007survey
You can help Advocates for Youth with a contribution today. To donate, visit http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/about/donatetoday.htm
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