Michigan Senator Pushes for Affirmative Consent Sex Ed Bill
In Michigan, Democratic Senator Curtis Hertel Jr., is sponsoring a bill that would require schools that already teach sex education to include information about the importance of asking for consent. Hertel believes affirmative consent is important because of the way in which the onus too often falls on women to say no.
High School Student in Pennsylvania Launches Sex Ed Organization
KC Miller, a high school senior in Pennsylvania, has founded the Keystone Coalition for Advancing Sex Education (CASE), a grassroots organization that advocates for comprehensive, LGBTQ-inclusive sex ed. Currently, Pennsylvania’s sex ed guidelines only require schools to teach about STDs. Miller has since drawn up legislation—the Pennsylvania Healthy Youth Act—to make comprehensive sex ed mandatory in Pennsylvania schools. He modeled the bill after the 2015 California Healthy Youth Act and the unsuccessful Pennsylvania Healthy Youth Act of 2009.
Parents in Oklahoma Outraged Over Middle Schoolers’ Sex Ed Assignment
Parents in Oklahoma have taken to Facebook in order to express outrage over sex ed lessons they feel are too graphic for their middle school-aged children. The curriculum was developed by the Connection Institute, a youth empowerment program seeking to help young people make safe, healthy choices around sex and relationships. Due to the volume of complaints, however, the superintendent decided to suspend the program pending further review.