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Opposing viewpoints on sex education
Sex education in the united states essay
Opposing viewpoints on sex education
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Neka Pierre
November 21, 2014
ENC 1102
In the century that we are living in, when people hear the term statutory rape it only means one thing, one grown man and a teenage girl having sexual relations. But what if I tell you that statutory rape has way more complications then that. Would you believe me? What if I tell you that the law of statutory rape should be reviewed and revise because it is confusing, bias and unfair. Would you be on my side? When statutory rape is brought up people never thinks about what happened to the two teens that just got caught having intercourse. Or what happen to that female teacher that just got caught doing the hanky-panky with that teenage boy. These questions never been thought of after the incident had occurred. But I guaranteed that if it was a thirty year old man with a girl that’s under the age of 18 everybody in states, out of states, different continents and maybe even different planets would have known and made sure that something would have happened to that man.
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According to spokesperson for Moral Outrage Laurie Peterson, “The same government that sends teens to school together and teaches them about safe sex also makes it illegal for them to engage in sex.” This means that the government knows that the teens are learning about sex because they are the ones giving the information to those teachers to teach. The only problem is that the government fails to mention to these teens that if they were to get caught having sexual intercourse they will have to appear in court and be forced to become a registered sex offenders. This is a problem because as soon as they are charged with this crime it will not be deleted from there
Picture this. You are heading off to college to begin the next chapter of your life. It is a moment you have always been waiting for. You are past the high school drama, and are ready to start taking classes that will allow you to obtain a degree in something you have always been passionate about. It’s your first week on campus and you are invited to a party being hosted by a group of upper classman. You show up to the party and immediately are handed a red cup with what you know is something you shouldn’t be drinking. You take a sip anyway and soon start talking to that guy in the corner who at first seems friendly, but soon begins to take advantage of you. Just like that everything changes. This is a situation millions of people face every
The median age difference between the female adolescent and the male offender was six years, Of all offenders of male statutory rape victims, 94% were female. Regardless of the victim’s gender, almost 3 out of every 5 victims of statutory rape were age 14 or 15, with relatively equal proportions in each of these ages. With this knowledge, their is still the assumption behind statutory rape laws is that if someone who has been in a relationship with said offender they are able to agree and it’s not considered rape,this can even happen when a 18 year old is with a 16 year old male or female one or both may be charged with Most children regardless of gender that are under the age of 16 or even 18 do not have the mature mental capacity to voluntarily consent to intercourse, when it comes to statutory rape the minor's consent to intercourse is irrelevant, even if he/she thinks they want to give
When it comes to monitoring and ensuring the well being of school-aged children, the agendas of most our nation’s parents, teachers, and public education policy makers seem to be heavily focused on topics such as bullying, drug awareness, and social development. Although each of these issues is very important and deserving of the attention it receives, there is one topic-sex education in the public school system-that holds just as much relevance amongst today’s youth, and yet it continues to be denied the same consideration. With underage sex being one of the nation’s long lasting taboos, one would assume that effective Sex Ed programs in the public school system would be geared towards today’s youth. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be the case, especially for those residents of the state of Florida.
Today’s young Americans face strong peer pressure to be sexually active and engage themselves in risky behaviors (Merino 100-109). Anyone deciding to have sex must first think about all the risks involved. Kekla Magoon, author of Sex Education in Schools, says that “half of all teens aged 15 to 19 years old in the United States have had sex” (Magoon 64-65). It is currently not required by federal law for schools to teach Sex education and those few schools that do teach Sex education have the decision to determine how much information is allowed. Advocates from both sides of the Sex education debate agree that teens need positive influences in order to make practical decisions (Magoon 88-89). Opponents of Abstinence-only education believe it fails because it does not prepare teens for all the risks of sex (Magoon 64-65).
What is date rape? Is date rape different from rape? In a traditional date, a man and a woman meet for dinner and hope that it goes well so they can continue to see each other. In some cases, things go terribly wrong causing law enforcement to get involved. According to Paglia, all women have want men want. Thus, we must be extremely careful when meeting someone for the first time, as we do not know if we can yet trust. We cannot trust that they will not place a drug in our drink when we go to the restroom. Some may argue that men should be taught to never to that to a woman. But shouldn’t a woman be taught to not leave a drink unattended during a date or during a party?
Prostitution is one of the oldest professions in history. In this modern age there are several classes of prostitutes with several methods of finding work, but they still face violence in their business. Though prostitutes are frowned upon by society and treated as criminals, under the law they should not be scrutinized by the morals of the people. Prostitutes frequently feel they have no options due to their illegal work, should they be assaulted they cannot turn to the police since many officers refuse to aid them as criminals. Prostitution should be regulated to fight human trafficking, increase quality of life for the women working in the industry, and generate taxes for the government while reducing the cost of dealing with prostitution.
In today’s society, juveniles that commit a sexual assault have become the subject of society. It’s become a problem in the United States due to the rise of sexual offenses committed by juveniles. The general public attitude towards sex offenders appears to be highly negative (Valliant, Furac, & Antonowicz, 1994). The public reactions in the past years have shaped policy on legal approaches to managing sexual offenses. The policies have included severe sentencing laws, sex offender registry, and civil commitment as a sexually violent predator (Quinn, Forsyth, & Mullen-Quinn, 2004). This is despite recidivism data suggesting that a relatively small group of juvenile offenders commit repeat sexual assaults after a response to their sexual offending (Righthand &Welch, 2004).
There are many topics nowadays that are still hard to talk about openly. Though we’ve opened the door on many controversies, some of the simplest parts of life can be the hardest to discuss. For most of us, sex in particular can be a taboo topic, which may be the reason why so many children and teens are misinformed on the inner workings of sexual relationships and how they develop as we grow and mature. For some adolescents, this can lead to an unhealthy fixation on the concept of sex, and in some cases, lead them to take action on a situation they do not fully understand. Sexual offenses are perceived as some of the most heinous crimes, but how could our views be affected if those acts were performed by a teenager? We may sometimes consider that they are the same as adult sex offenders; however our judgment can often be clouded by our lack of understanding. Adolescent sex offenders are different from adult sex offenders, are treated in a different way, and often have very different circumstances of their crime.
...sequently arrested and charged with unlawful sex .At the trial, the judge was disparaging of the girl’s position, describing her as ‘a willing participant’ at 12 years of age, ignoring the fact that if the defendant had committed the offence after May 2003 when the new Sexual Offences Act came into force, he would be liable for an immediate charge of raping a child under 13.The defendant was given a two-year conditional discharge, was made to sign the Sex Offenders Register and escaped prison. This case study is evidential that young girls are much more aware of their sexuality and their consent. Many young girls participate in weekend socialising, drinking and using drugs with men, who consequently believe these girls are at the legal age of consenting in both sexual intercourse and drinking alcohol, only when do these young girls go too far is when rape is cried.
There are far more males serving for statutory rape within prisons than females. There are hardly any females reported being charged with statutory rape or being sued for the same crime. The law does state that males and females have the same punishment for statutory rape (Christopher, 2012). However, in many cases young boys do not report the crime because they look at it as an act of becoming a man to have sexual relations with not only young girls but older women as well. There are several cases in which young boys are charged with the crime of statutory rape even when all parties are involved and gave their consent. For example in one case, a fourteen year old boy was charged with statutory rape for being involved in sexual activities with three girls who were younger than the boy, two of th...
After many years of prosecuting statutory rape laws, some people are being to question whether or not these laws when concerning non-violent “sex with a minor” are actually appropriate and effective in protecting the rights of minors. The people who support statutory rape laws would argue that in any relationship where one legal aged partner is significantly older than the other, the older of the two has a greater power advantage over the younger. Thus even if a person under the age of consent agrees to sexual activity, it is still considered lawfully to be rape, because that person is not mature enough to make a well thought-out decision. Adults fear that the younger person in the relationship may be unconsciously forced emotionally, if not physically, into engaging in sexual acts with their partner. According to the Taking Sides (Issue 17), “Statutory rape laws are designed, in part, to keep these types of unequal relationships from becoming human nature.”
The fact of the matter is that a high school student in the United States has an extensive probability of receiving a sub par sexual education based on where they live. Currently, there are only twenty-two states mandate sexual education and only thirteen states that require the information that’s taught to be medically accurate. It’s the education systems responsibility to equip youth with all of the information they need to know to make the right choice about sex. That kind of irresponsibility isn't tolerated in any other subject, and health class shouldn't be the exception. If all school subject enjoyed those same loose guidelines, a history teacher could tell their class that Ariana Grande ended the Civil War in 1999 and it would be perfectly legal (Oliver). In her article addressing the shortcomings of american sex education, social activist Beth Leyba wrote “statistics have shown that [abstinence-only] does not work and, in fact leads to higher rates of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, as kids who are only taught abstinence are less likely to use contraception and condoms when they begin having sex”
All teenagers should have a mandatory sex education to protect them from exploitation, violence and their own emotional burdens. WebMD says that many teens have said they feel bad about giving into the temptation of having sex (“Emotional Side,” n.d.). Supporting that statement, BRAVEheart (n.d.) agrees that, “Sex is a powerful and intimate act that young people are not ready for, they feel regret, anger, emotional discomfort and depression.” School prepares teenagers for the future, sex is a big part of every kids future. Teachers need to prepare students for the overwhelming emotions connected with taking part in sexual activities. Depending on whether the acts will be consensual or not, as an authority figure, teachers should be specially trained to give guidance in case any of their students were to be victimized or put in an emotionally straining position. The emotions that a sexually active teenager goes through are not to be overlooked, they can be dangerous to their wellbeing and that is why they need to be guided. The Heritage Foundation says, “comparing to when they were virgins, sexual teens were less likely to feel happy and more likely to show signs of depression.” (“The Emotional Effects,” n.d.). Not only do teenagers deal with depressing but “sexually active teenage girls are also 3 times more likely to commit suicide than virgins, and boys were 8 times more likely.” (“Sex Education Targets,” n.d.). Teenagers experience hormones on various levels throughout their lives, and they can get out of hand and be harmful. A situation that could have been solved by a discussion in a classroom can turn into a life or death scenario. Teenage years are essential for learning and having experiences and to protect teenagers from harming themselves, the government needs put an
The government likes to pretend that if high school students get taught the “abstinence-only” method they would never think of taking part in sexual activities. Statistically this is incorrect. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “56 percent of high school students are virgins”(Martin). For the 56 percent abstinence only is doing them well, but there are still 44 percent of high school students engaging in sex without knowing the precau...
“Forty-one percent of teens ages 18-19 said they know nothing about condoms, and seventy-five percent said they know nothing about the contraceptive pill” (Facts on American Teens). Even if schools taught just abstinence it still would not be enough. “In 2007, a study showed that abstinence only programs have no beneficial impact on the sexual behavior of young people” (Facts on American Teens). Sex education is not taken as seriously as it should be in schools, it is treated like it is not a big deal. Schools should require a sex education class that specifically teaches students about sex and goes into depth of all the possible consequences because of the high pregnancy, abortion, and virus rates.