Alifa Watkins
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“As many as 11% of U.S. women ages 15-44 who have ever had sexual intercourse have used a “morning after” pill at least once, or 5.8 million women. Half say they used it because they feared their birth control method may have failed, and the rest say they had unprotected sex.” –First Federal Report on…
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In 2011, the secretary of health and human services’ banned over-the-counter sales of emergency birth control to girls under age 17… in 2013, a federal judge challenged this decision. When Kathleen Sebelius, former health secretary of President Obama, blocked the sale of emergency birth control (commonly referred as the “morning after pill” or by its…
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Although social conservatives have dominated discourse around religion and sexuality, it turns out that millions of religious and spiritual youth and adults believe that faith, and a positive approach to healthy sexuality, are not mutually exclusive. I never thought that I would see that day where I would come across an article discussing how Churches…
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47% of fathers in Saudi Arabia find it difficult to answer their children s questions related to sex and about 87% find it embarrassing to answer the questions, and, as a result, they tend to ignore them. Professor Amal Mohammed Banouna In her recent research study of the position of parents and teachers on offering…
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“Informed teens are much more likely to wait for first intercourse, use condoms and other barrier and birth control methods at first intercourse, and are more likely to take responsibility regarding their own sexual health.” Emily E. Prior But not just any information given to teens will produce such a result. For decades, sex education programming…
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(También en español) In Part 1, I highlighted the first three of six sex narratives developed by Marty Klein, Ph.D., in his book, America’s War on Sex, and outlined in last year’s State of Sexual Freedom Report, produced by the Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance (Woodhull). Dr. Klein posits, “Sexual freedom expands or contracts within political, social, economic, cultural, and psychological…
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(También en español) “Sexual freedom expands or contracts within political, social, economic, cultural, and psychological contexts–some of them contradictory, some of them mutually reinforcing.” Marty Klein, Ph.D. This is where the narratives of sexuality come into play: a “narrative” is a coherent storyline that contains a set of assumptions that enables people to make meaning out…
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Pass This Test and Get Kicked Out of School
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4 min read
También en español Delhi Charter School, in Louisiana, has a Student Pregnancy Policy that allows staff to force female students who are suspected of being pregnant to take a pregnancy test. If students are pregnant or refuse to take the test, they are kicked out and must undergo home schooling if they want to continue…
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Sex Education is a Human Right
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3 min read
También en español The Woodhull Sexual Freedom Alliance (Woodhull), named in honor of Victoria Woodhull, joins the public discussion about sex education by framing it in the context of sexual freedom and human rights. Woodhull is a leader in advocacy and activism for sexual freedom, rights, and liberty and also acts as a convener of…
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In the U.S., teens often feel that if they were to confide in their parents about having sex or thinking about it, their parents would be very disappointed. That is one of the reasons why teens don’t seek advice or guidance from their parents when it comes to sexual matters. But what about parents who don’t…