| Equality
California Admonishes President Bush
by Dan Miller for the San
Francisco Spectrum
Bush announced in his January 20th State of
the Union speech that he will double federal funding for
abstinence education, in an effort to protect youth from
sexually transmitted diseases. He did not, however, address
education needs of youth who do not abstain from sexual
activity. Equality California has taken him to task for
such an irresponsible statement.
To quote Bush verbatim: "To encourage right choices, we must be willing
to confront the dangers young people face - even when they are difficult to
talk about. Each year, about three million teenagers contract sexually transmitted
diseases that can harm them, or kill them, or prevent them from ever becoming
parents. In my budget, I propose a grassroots campaign to help inform families
about these medical risks. We will double federal funding for abstinence programs,
so schools can teach this fact of life: Abstinence for young people is the only
certain way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases. Decisions children make
now can affect their health and character for the rest of their lives. All of
us - parents, schools, government - must work together to counter the negative
influence of the culture, and to send the right messages to our children."
"The focus on abstention as the only way to prevent sexually transmitted
diseases is dangerous and threatens the lives of millions of American youth,"
said Geoff Kors, Executive Director of Equality California. "Whether the
President approves or not, some American teenagers do have sex — and they
should have access to life-saving information that allows them to make realistic
choices to protect themselves."
Bush also asked for immigration reform "to reflect [American] values."
"He ignored the plight of thousands of bi-national same-sex couples, who
do not have a legal option for staying together as a family in this country,"
Kors said. "Unlike Americans who can marry, lesbian and gay Americans cannot
sponsor a foreign-born partner’s application for citizenship or a work
permit. These Americans are forced to choose between love and country."
"Bush is not a President for all Americans," Kors stated. "He
does not support all families, he does not support all youth, and he thinks
it is acceptable to amend the United States Constitution to exclude some Americans.
But lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans will not settle for less
than full equality, and we will not accept this President’s uneducated
judgment about our families."
Founded in 1998, Equality California (formerly CAPE) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan,
grassroots-based, statewide advocacy organization whose mission is to ensure
the dignity, safety, equality, and civil rights of all lesbian, gay, bisexual,
and transgender Californians. Equality California claims to be one of the largest
and fastest growing statewide LGBT organizations in the country.
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