November 3, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:
media@aclu.org LEESBURG, FL --
The American Civil Liberties Union of Florida today expressed concern over the
announcement that the Christian Care Center, a ministry of First Baptist of
Leesburg, will use a $2 million federal grant to teach abstinence-only education
to teens.
The ACLU is concerned that the health of Florida's youth
will be at risk if the grant is used to give students incomplete or even
misleading information about sex.
"Teaching abstinence can be part
of a comprehensive sexual education plan, but if taught alone, it will leave
young people with partial information and misinformation which only puts their
health -- and even their lives -- in danger," said Howard Simon, Executive
Director of the ACLU of Florida. "The most educationally sound strategy is
comprehensive sex education that ensures that teens in Florida are fully
informed and not put in harm's way by a biased approach."
Many
abstinence-only programs throughout the country have been discovered to include
false or misleading medical information, which can lead to a misinformed teenage
population, increased transmission of sexual diseases and potentially major
health problems. Medical and scientific evidence shows that abstinence-only
education is ineffective and can lead to risky behavior. For example, teens who
pledged to remain virginal until marriage were far more likely to engage in
risky behavior. When many did have vaginal intercourse, they did so without
using any protection.
The ACLU said it is also concerned that the
church-run program might use a curriculum that is religiously biased. The use of
federal grant money to promote a particular religious belief violates the First
Amendment's religious freedom protections. The ACLU said it will file a public
records request to determine whether the curriculum is in compliance with the
Constitution and does not reflect the point of view of one religious tradition.
"We need to ensure that government funds are not being used to
promote religious views in public schools," said George Crossley, Chair of the
Central Florida Chapter of the ACLU of Florida. "That is why we will be filing a
public records request to find out what exactly the government is funding. We
are hopeful that the church will comply with laws restricting the use of federal
funds."
For more information on the ACLU's work regarding
abstinence-only-until-marriage education visit
www.takeissuetakecharge.org
