In October, Utah Democrats proposed a number of “pro-family” bills. One of these bills pertains to sex education in schools. This past March, Utah began its stride in the right direction with the passing of HB71. School districts may now allow instruction on contraception while still strongly emphasizing abstinence.
While this is a small change in sex education, Utah is progressing. The pro-family bills proposed would allow more information about safe sex as part of the curriculum. Many individuals argue that sex education should come from parents. The truth of the matter is, some parents aren't having "the talk" with their teenagers.
When I was 12 years old, a girl at school was talking about sex. I didn't know exactly what it was, so I turned to the dictionary; a pretty accurate source for information. If that same scenario were to occur today, I would be searching on Google. In a world of technology, there is a rise in pornography addiction among teenagers, and it's clear as to why.
Accurate information about sex needs to be provided to teenagers. Sex isn't bad, but poor education on the topic is. Utah is going the right direction with HB71 and hopefully they continue to do so.
Celsie Long, Salt Lake City