High Schooler Protests ‘Slut-Shaming’ Abstinence Assembly Despite Alleged Threat

[derspiess]

And you'd think that the kids offended by this woman would be mentioning religious messages if there had been any-- that's red meat for the ACLU.

She didnt go to the meeting

Then how does she know what was said during it?  Second-hand from other kids.  Come on, you *know* they'd mention religious stuff if there had been any.

You have gone off the rails badly.

Yeah.  And I have GUNS  

[derspiess]

Disagree.  It could still be a secular message.  Their motivations behind the secular message are not relevant.  And you'd think that the kids offended by this woman would be mentioning religious messages if there had been any-- that's red meat for the ACLU.

Just out of curiosity, is there a non-faith-based organization that believes that abstinence is the only real option?

Dunno. 

[crazy canuck]

Disagree.  It could still be a secular message.  Their motivations behind the secular message are not relevant.  And you'd think that the kids offended by this woman would be mentioning religious messages if there had been any-- that's red meat for the ACLU.

Just out of curiosity, is there a non-faith-based organization that believes that abstinence is the only real option?

[Malthus]

Disagree.  It could still be a secular message.  Their motivations behind the secular message are not relevant.  And you'd think that the kids offended by this woman would be mentioning religious messages if there had been any-- that's red meat for the ACLU.

Just out of curiosity, is there a non-faith-based organization that believes that abstinence is the only real option?

Shooting off in the  is a very controversial form of birth control.

We call that "the Ide Method".

A school assembly hosting this would be amusing. 

[crazy canuck]

Shooting off in the  is a very controversial form of birth control.

We call that "the Ide Method".

A school assembly hosting this would be amusing. 

[Malthus]

Shooting off in the  is a very controversial form of birth control.

We call that "the Ide Method".

A school assembly hosting this would be amusing. 

I sense a possible career choice for Ide opening up ... 

[MadImmortalMan]

Shooting off in the  is a very controversial form of birth control.

We call that "the Ide Method".

A school assembly hosting this would be amusing. 

It's good for the skin, baby.

[Phillip V]

Maybe it did prevent someone somewhere from having sex before they were ready, dunno.  But it was generally harmless.

The states with the highest push for abstinence have the highest teen pregnancy rates in the country.  These are also the same states who are pushing to outlaw abortion, or at least make it incredibly difficult to get one especially for teens.

Yes... generally harmless.

What demographic/neighborhoods in the state are getting pregnant early.

[OttoVonBismarck]

Hmmm...  On the one hand, I hate the lies and nonsense of the abstinence-only movement.  On the other hand, I also hate fucking busybodies.  You just know this girl is a terrible person.

She may or may not be a slut, but she's definitely an attention whore.

At my WV high school we had a couple of these things each year.  IIRC nobody was required to attend but you had to go to a study hall that was presided over by the most hated teacher.  So we went, sat quietly or snickered under our breath when they tried to sell us on abstinence, and when it was over we were glad that it at least got us out of a couple of classes that day.

Maybe it did prevent someone somewhere from having sex before they were ready, dunno.  But it was generally harmless.

The states that push abstinence only sex education consistently having the highest rates of teen pregnancy and STDs suggests that in fact this isn't harmless, either generally or specifically.

Ignorance is never "harmless", even if some people can see through it.

FWIW a different article I read about this the other day mentioned in it that West Virginia actually has pretty good state-level policies on contraception and etc, but because of weak oversight of schools a lot depends on how it gets implemented since county school boards and principals can get away with ignoring State promulgated rules for years due to lack of compliance investigation.

[OttoVonBismarck]

This local Charleston, WV paper is a bit more informative.

Thursday April 11, 2013
Abstinence presentation causes stir at GW
by Shay Maunz
Daily Mail staff
CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A visiting sex education speaker who emphasizes abstinence sparked controversy this week with an hour-long assembly at George Washington High School that some students found objectionable.   

The speaker was Pam Stenzel, who travels the nation giving talks about the dangers of sex before marriage.

Her approach to sex education is to focus on the dangers of sex and the virtues of abstinence above all else. Her speaking style is abrasive.

"Really what I would call what it was is slut-shaming . . . she picked on girls who were sexually active," said Katelyn Campbell, a GW senior. "I know there were several girls who left the assembly crying because their feelings were so hurt."

No video of her speeches in Charleston were provided to the Daily Mail, but unsanctioned videos of similar talks are available at Youtube.com. Audio of her presentation at GW is available here.

The YouTube videos show Stenzel telling crowds of teenagers that "abortion is painful," that "no one has ever had more than one partner and not paid," and that a girl taking birth control "becomes 10 times more likely to contract a disease - that girl could end up sterile or dead."

Colin Hearn, president of Enlightened Communications and Stenzel's publicist, squarely rejected the notion that her teachings are "faith based" but said she's a publicly religious woman. Stenzel has a degree in psychology from Liberty University, according to her website.

Her visit here was sponsored by Believe in West Virginia, a religious group.

The group booked Stenzel for an engagement at St. Timothy Lutheran Church -- she spoke there Monday, the evening before she went to GW and Riverside high schools -- and then approached the schools with an offer to bring Stenzel there, too, and to foot the bill.

"She shared a message that expresses her opinion, and it's one that we were in support of," said John deBlecourt, Believe in West Virginia executive director. "It's not a particularly religious message. Her message is that abstinence is the safest."

Riverside Principal Valery Harper said she's heard no complaints since Stenzel was at Riverside, but students at GW have been vocal in their opposition to the assembly.

Superintendent Ron Deurring said he fielded a handful of complaints this week. One student said a parent has taken the issue to the American Civil Liberties Union. 

GW Principal George Aulenbacher sat through the assembly with his students Tuesday and said it contained no religious content or mistruths and he didn't think it was inappropriate.

Students tell a different story.

"She really contributed negatively to the sexual environment at GW," Campbell said. "She used a lot of scare tactics to keep people from having sex . . . all her facts were hyperbolic or unreasonable."

Senior Julia Foley didn't attend the assembly but says she's heard plenty about it since - mainly students shocked by Stenzel's tendency to yell into the microphone or her admonition that "there's no condom for the heart."

"I just didn't think they'd bring someone in to talk about stuff like that," Foley said. "A lot of people were offended by it, and you're not going to change someone's mind that way."

Tuesday's presentation was an aside from the students' usual lessons in sexual health, which happen in classrooms throughout the year. State code requires that curriculum to emphasize abstinence but include information on other forms of birth control. 

So, said Brenda Isaac, the school system's head nurse, even if they didn't get that information from Stenzel, students are getting it in school.

"Personally I like to see a whole comprehensive lesson," Isaac said. "But that happens in their classes."

Margaret Chapman Pomponio, executive director at West Virginia Free, a Charleston-based pro-choice group, said West Virginia's legislative code supports a relatively comprehensive form of sex education, though the system often breaks down during implementation.

Pomponio heard about the controversy surrounding Tuesday's assemblies this week. She called talks like Stenzel's "dangerous."

"It's not only disappointing, it's outrageous that a speaker would provide not just inaccurate facts but judgmental rhetoric aimed at hurting students," she said. "Using fear and scare tactics does not help our youth, and we know when young people are given medically accurate information, they're able to make informed decisions."

Becky Jordon, a member of the Kanawha County Board of Education, was at the assembly Tuesday, sitting with staff (her son attends GW, and she wanted to see Stenzel speak). Jordon thought there was "nothing inappropriate" about Stenzel's presentation and said that if scare tactics were employed, they were appropriate.

"You know what?" Jordon said. "I think STDs are scary. I think having a baby as a teenager is scary." 

Contact writer Shay Maunz at shay.ma[email protected] or 304-348-4886.

[The Minsky Moment]

Disagree.  It could still be a secular message.  Their motivations behind the secular message are not relevant.

Actually motivations matter quite a lot - see the Supreme Court's decisions in McCreary and Van Orden, which turned on the purpose behind what appeared to be identical monuments.

But here the problem is not motivation.  It is the message itself.

Imagine a representative of a religious organization gives the following speech:
"I am here today to tell you God's plan for X.  God's plan for X is  a . . . b . . . c  . . . etc."
That is unambiguously a religious message.   Whether a,b, or c are capable of secural construction is irrelevant because they are being presented as a religious injunction.

Now take the same example, but instead of beginning the speech with the "God's plan" language, the speaker passes out a flier that contains those same words. I.e. he says the same thing, but in writing instead of orally. 
That doesn't change the case at all.  The message is still exactly the same, whether it is written or spoken or some of both.  It is still "do a,b,c, because that is what God wants."

And the fact that a,b,c just happen coincidentally to be evangelical doctrine as to matter X is just icing on the cake.

[MadImmortalMan]

So, some of the kids at the event told everyone there that they were sexually active and then the woman berated them for having sex? Is that right?

Why would ...


What...

[derspiess]

Disagree.  It could still be a secular message.  Their motivations behind the secular message are not relevant.

Actually motivations matter quite a lot - see the Supreme Court's decisions in McCreary and Van Orden, which turned on the purpose behind what appeared to be identical monuments.

But here the problem is not motivation.  It is the message itself.

Imagine a representative of a religious organization gives the following speech:
"I am here today to tell you God's plan for X.  God's plan for X is  a . . . b . . . c  . . . etc."
That is unambiguously a religious message.   Whether a,b, or c are capable of secural construction is irrelevant because they are being presented as a religious injunction.

Now take the same example, but instead of beginning the speech with the "God's plan" language, the speaker passes out a flier that contains those same words. I.e. he says the same thing, but in writing instead of orally. 
That doesn't change the case at all.  The message is still exactly the same, whether it is written or spoken or some of both.  It is still "do a,b,c, because that is what God wants."

And the fact that a,b,c just happen coincidentally to be evangelical doctrine as to matter X is just icing on the cake.

I'll grant you that the brochure was inappropriate, but I don't see any evidence of religion in the speaker's actual message.

[MadImmortalMan]

Would not bang.

[MadImmortalMan]

Bio: http://pamstenzel.com/MeetPam.aspx

Her "talk": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0ezYNWIDB0