Two Day Magazine

What is the obsession with teen girls and abstinence? Not once have I found a news article online that specifically promotes abstinence among adolescent boys. Now, to make things even more biased, there is a new video game being developed in central Florida (which, by the way, uses $434,000 of federal money) to help teach young girls how to “just say no” to abhorrent things such as kissing.

Instead of just teaching common sense, age appropriate sex education to our youth, we are clearly so afraid to discuss anything about sex, that we would rather have avatars do it for us. In the game, which is set to launch in the spring of 2011, the different female characters are approached by other characters and asked to “make out” or other “sexual innuendos”. You score points by saying, “No”. Wow, sounds like a lot of fun.

I am just becoming rather tired and frustrated by the hypocrisy when it comes to teaching our youth about their bodies and about sexuality. Sex is a completely natural part of life, it is what we are all here to do, and I am sick of people trying to make sex seem dirty, unnatural and wrong. This video game only perpetuates that.

“Just Say No” policies haven’t worked with drugs, so why on earth would they work with sex? When young women have sex before they are ready, it’s usually because they are looking for love, looking for acceptance, looking for validation.

Here’s a thought. Why not instead of spending $434,000 of federal money to make a video game, we use that money for after school programs that promote self esteem, healthy body image, healthy living, and yes, appropriate sex education. If people have a  sense of how amazing their bodies are, if they realize how precious their bodies are, and if we give the gift of education, we may be surprised at how much more respect they have for themselves and one another.  Now, that would be money well spent.