Dear future President,

Despite who you are, your political beliefs, or your gender… there is an issue that must be addressed. Thankfully for this website, this is my chance to voice my opinion.

As a high school teen with every known social media account, I have been bombarded with pro-choice and pro-life posts. Despite one’s opinion on the topic, pregnancy in young teens is spiking. According to dosomething.org , “3 in 10 teen American girls will get pregnant at least once before the age of 20. That’s nearly 750,000 teen pregnancies every year.” That means, in the classroom I am currently sitting in, at least 6 of us will be pregnant before the age of 20; that’s in the next 4 years. Throughout elementary, middle, and high school, we are taught abstinence through sex ed. courses. Sex seems to be inevitable. As teenagers, hormones and sexual urges are amplified. A majority of teenagers are going to have sex; according to Huffington Post,about 70% of all teens have had sex, based on 2012 research. Having sex is natural. Maybe it shouldn’t be an activity someone who doesn't even pay their own cell phone bill should take part in, however, it’s not something a parent can prevent. Instead of being taught through sexual education that “you will get pregnant if you have sex”, maybe students should be taught how to experience sex safely.

American high schools have made it their responsibility to provide students with sexual education. The anatomy and knowledge of human sexual organs is very important, especially for those going through puberty because of the mere fact that their hormones are heightened. Sexual education can help teens to be more responsible when it comes to sex. Although, when the only thing being taught is to refrain from sex altogether, some important information is excluded. As stated on education.com,“Comprehensive sex ed teaches teens how to protect themselves against disease and unintended pregnancies, by using contraceptives such as condoms and birth control.”; when teaching abstinence, the curriculum leaves out important facts about how to use these contraceptive devices correctly. Abstinence is not the only way to avoid S.T.I’s, and not the only way to prevent getting pregnant.

The abortion rate in this country is embarrassing compared to others. Instead of making a fuss about abortion, why don't you, as president, try to prevent teen pregnancy altogether by making condoms readily available? Abstinence-based sexual education promotes a practice that makes it impossible for one to become pregnant, however, it's unrealistic. “...Teens in the Netherlands become sexually active around the same age as their American counterparts.... But … American teenage girls are twice as likely to have abortions, and eight times as likely to give birth as their Dutch equivalents.” (truth-out.org); the only explanation for this is that the curriculum for sex-ed are complete opposites. Instead of being taught that sex is horrendous and should only be done by married couples, schools should teach that sex between two people can be a beautiful thing- as long as one takes the right precautions.

In this country, sex seems to be such an uncomfortable topic - asking for condoms from your mom isn't the easiest thing to do. In the high school I am currently attending, health, which includes sexual education, is mandatory in order to graduate. If sexual education is important enough to make mandatory, I believe that, even if abstinence is still enforced, condoms should still be readily available for those who choose not to practice it. Obviously, schools cannot provide us with other forms of birth control due to the fact they must be prescribed, but it is very possible for schools to at least provide students with condoms, and to teach my peers and I the proper way to use them. Refraining from sex until marriage is a religious concept, and considering that I go to a public school, I do not believe that that should be the only procedure enforced. For those, like myself, who aren't particularly religious, feel no moral obligation to wait until marriage to have sex. Although I am waiting for that special someone, some aren't concerned with that. When I decide for myself that I would like to experience a sexual interaction, I would prefer to do so with the knowledge of how to do so safely.

Sincerely,

Mikayla