Texas, my beloved home state, has some pretty wacky ideas about sex. Specifically, about how we should and should not talk about sex in front of the kids—and, to be clear, I used the word “should” there for demonstrative purposes only, because a huge part of the state seems to think that we should not talk to kids about sex, ever. Especially not in school.
Huffington Post created maps showing which states have less-than-progressive policies regarding sex education in five areas (h/t Lynn), and of course Texas appears in all five:
- No requirement for sex education;
- No requirement for HIV education;
- No requirement that the sex and HIV education that is provided is medically accurate;
- Requirement that any sex ed that is provided include abstinence information, with no requirement for contraception information; and
- Requirement that any sex ed that is provided, and that includes any information on same-sex relationships, only include negative information.
In that last category, we only find three states: Texas, Alabama, and South Carolina.
Yes, Texas has one of those “no promo homo” laws. Specifically, § 85.007(b) of the Texas Health & Safety Code, which deals with HIV education and prevention programs for minors, states that: Continue reading
