The former National Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month of May has been renamed Sex Ed For All: Youth Power, Information, and Rights Month.
A coalition made up of Power to Decide, Advocates for Youth, SIECUS, Healthy Teen Network, the Guttmacher Institute, NoTeenShame, and Planned Parenthood Federation of America was behind this name change. It acknowledges that young people’s sexual health needs go beyond pregnancy prevention and that a focus on “teen pregnancy prevention” contributes to stigma around pregnant and parenting youth.
The new name makes clear that all young people deserve access to sex education.
They deserve to have the information, resources, and skills they need to protect their health and build their future — without shame or judgment.
Ideally, sex education should be culturally specific and taught each school year by a trained educator. It should also teach a broad variety of topics around sex, bodies, identities, and relationships, and allow students to explore their values and beliefs and practice the skills they need to navigate relationships.
LGBTQ young people deserve sex education that addresses their identities and experiences. Sex education that is LGBTQ-inclusive also provides young people with opportunities to understand sexual orientation and gender identity in open, non-stigmatizing ways.
Access to sex education and sexual and reproductive health care services has been critical to helping teens stay safe and healthy. Rates of unintended pregnancy among teens in the U.S. have reached a historic low, and more young people are delaying sexual activity until they’re ready and using birth control when they do have sex.
Parents and caregivers need to know that there’s not just one best way to talk about sex and relationships. The important thing is to start and continue having these conversations. Rather than giving “the talk,” parents and caregivers should think about communicating with their children in a series of ongoing conversations that reflect their child’s age and development.
Studies show that teens who report having good conversations with their parents about sexuality wait longer to begin having sex, and are more likely to use condoms and other birth control methods when they do become sexually active. Numerous studies have also shown that teens want to hear what their parents think and feel about sex and relationships.
PlannedParenthood.org/Parents is a resource where parents and caregivers can find guidance on how to talk with their children of any age about a variety of topics. Whether you have a preschooler, a high schooler, or a child in between, you can get support about how to talk about topics like personal safety, healthy friendships and relationships, bodies and body image, gender identity and sexual orientation, and sexual health.
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