Letting Children Choose Their Predators

Marjorie Campbell, marjorie@marjoriecampbell.com

While researchers reported a STD "epidemic" in California among its highly "sex-educated" young people,  school board members approved the distribution of birth control pills and patches to girls in 7-8 grades (11-14 year olds) at a Maine Middle School where condoms available since 2000 have failed to prevent all pregnancies there.  Apparently unaware or unwilling to address the disastrous results being reported from California's broad sex education program - a program that receives no federal funds in order to exclude abstinence education - school officials in Portland Maine asserted, ""This isn't encouraging kids to have sex. This is about the kids who are engaging in sexual activity." 

I beg your pardon?  When did we extend the Culture of Adult Desire to 11 year old girls to make their own choice to have sex?  That's called "child depredation" because 11 year old girls have not formed the judgmental capacity to choose responsibly and without influence from, say the 16 year old boys, the school nurse offering free birth control pills and a school board saying "kids will be kids ... they just  love to have sex these days!"

I smell Baby Boomer finks here, deciding to impose upon our children their own taste for sexual irresponsibility and refusing to protect growing girls from sexual predators - a growing national disaster evident in reports like Miriam Grossman's "Unprotected" and the Center for Disease Control's alert over the rise in female suicide rates.

It does not take a rocket scientist to conclude that 11-14 year old girls should not be sexually servicing anyone, including the cute boys who know the way to the student health center.  We consider these kids "children" which is why a girl cannot "choose" to drive to school, buy a round of martinis for the gang, ride her bike without a helmet, quit school to get a job or buy cigarettes.  Imagine offering free cigarettes in the student health center not to encourage smoking, but for the little children who are already enjoying cigarettes!"

This Board no doubt longs to educate and protect these children in a challenging culture - but it is no protection to let children choose their own predators.