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In 2012, Dallas County had the
fourth highest teen birth rate in the nation, and STDs are on the rise among
teenagers. Zachary Thompson, director of Dallas County Health and Human
Services (DCHHS), stated that teenagers are inundated with sexually explicit
messages, silencing the current abstinence message taught in schools. “The
issue is, we’re seeing an increase in the number of teen pregnancies statewide
as well as STDs and HIV among the 13–18 age group,” he said. Thompson’s
solution is to provide more explicit and detailed sex education as well as
distributing condoms in schools, churches, and wherever young people gather.
In strong disagreement with Thompson
is Marilyn Morris, president of AIM for Success, a school abstinence program
she and her husband founded 20 years ago. She became pregnant as a high school
senior, even though her dream was to be a professional tennis player. She
married the father of her child, and they have been married for 44 years. Her
abstinence beliefs are based on freedom. Morris declares, “It is totally a
freedom message. You’re free to go on with your dreams and goals. Go have fun.
Enjoy life. But don’t worry about pregnancy. Don’t worry about paying child
support. Don’t worry about sexually transmitted diseases. You’re totally free
to have an exciting life to avoid this.” She pointed out that providing teens
with condoms sends the wrong message. She emphasized that society needs to help
young people control their sexual desires instead of giving them permission and
added that the abstinence message works; it originated in the early 1990s, and
since then, rates for birth and pregnancy and abortion have declined, according
to Morris.
According to the US Department of
Health and Human Services, statistics for pregnancy rates across the United
States have dropped; however, as a state, Texas still ranks fourth in the
nation for teen pregnancies. Dallas County teenage STD rates are also
increasing. One quarter of the 5,000 gonorrhea cases and 16,000 chlamydia cases
were diagnosed in Texas’s teenagers in 2010. Morris explained that the numbers
are higher in states with larger percentages of minority populations. At Tasby
Middle School, with a high enrollment of black and Hispanic students, some
parents believe condoms should be made available to their children. Thompson
wants the Texas legislature to study the matter and consider funding the
purchase of condoms for Dallas County schools.
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
