What is at stake?

Where sex education is operational, the most important question is whether it is working. Where it has been rejected, the main issue is whether there is a sense of disallowing it. Eventually, it is the well-being of children and the entire society that are at stake.

What informed the debate on sex education?

In the year 2008, Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that a quarter of American teenagers had Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs), and the same can be said of primary youngsters on the globe.

A daily serving of sex and indecency

In addition, the media and film industry have made sex part of every meal for the family. Unless one is watching a nature documentary or a religious program, there is no way to avoid denotative and connotative aspects of sex. Often this occurs when the mother, father, and children are seated together. The fact is that if you don’t tell your child about sex, someone else will, and the information may be transmitted in a manner that you may not like.

Is it working?

If sex education’s only aim was to ensure teenagers were informed about pertinent issues, then it has succeeded. However, if this approach was aimed at changing behavior, and to help young people engage in responsible sex (if they chose to), then it has failed. Consider, for example, the case of the US, which has one of the highest birth rates among teenagers, yet its young people are well-informed about sex.

Is it worth trying?

In Africa, Asia, and the Middle East, where sex is a taboo subject, sex education is rare in schools. Some Christian denominations and Islam do not advocate for this type of curriculum. Contraceptive use is frowned upon if not prohibited by religion. Parents cannot talk to their children about it because of cultural norms. Unsurprisingly, these are some of the areas with the highest teenage pregnancy rates in Africa.

It’s time to rethink sex education in terms of its necessity and efficacy, depending on where one comes from.

© EthLeen

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Research has found that the more time girls spend on social media the more likely they are to be dissatisfied with their bodies and have low self-esteem. Many teen girls spend hours on Facebook hoping that they will get the most likes for the comments or photos they have posted. If they do not receive the response they expected it can lead to low self-esteem and depression.

Interviews done by New Flinders University prove these facts. Here are their findings:

New Flinders University researchers interviewed more than 1000 high school girls and found conversations about appearance were “intensified” on social media, and were more influential because they involved peers.

The girls who were first interviewed in years 8 and 9 were asked about their social media habits and self-esteem, then again when they were in years 10 and 11. By then, 90 percent had a Facebook account, with an average of 475 friends and were uploading pictures of themselves to the Internet. The time they spent on social media had blown out from 1 hour 45 minutes a day to 2½ hours.

The study further proved how teen girls felt about their body image and weight. Here are the results:

Even though 80 percent of the girls surveyed were classified as normal weight, 46 percent said they were dissatisfied with how much they weighed. “Time spent on social network sites was related to lower self-esteem, body-esteem, sense of identity and higher depression,” Amy Slater from Flinders University’s school of psychology, said.

Social commentator Melinda Tankard Reist said young girls seeking affirmation via social media were ”setting themselves up for negative mental health outcomes.”

“They feel they have to be on display,” she said. ”We live in a culture that rewards exhibitionism [and] everyone is judged on their physical appearance.”

Researchers also stated that social media has such a large impact on teen girls because it is extremely pervasive and interactive. If a teen girl already has low self-esteem due to the natural growing pains we all go through and then sees negative comments about something she has shared or a photo she has posted this could affect her in profound ways.

As you can see, social media is extremely important to teen girls. Because of its importance and impact on self-esteem and identity it is advisable for parents to monitor the best they can the things that are said and seen on social media by their teen girls, and boys for that matter.

©EthLeen

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The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that Somalia has 97.5% FGM prevalence. This implies that almost every woman and girl in Somalia has undergone this painful and life-threatening cruelty. The practice is so ingrained in the Somali society that recently it was reported that Somali diaspora members were travelling back to Somalia or Kenya to take their girls to undergo FGM.  In essence, a Somali woman who has not been ‘cut’ is hard to come by.

Somalia is in good company

According to WHO, FGM is a global problem and the statistics are shocking:

WHO estimates that between 100 and 140 million girls and women worldwide have been subjected to one of the first three types of female genital mutilation. Estimates based on the most recent prevalence data indicate that 91,5 million girls and women above 9 years old in Africa are currently living with the consequences of female genital mutilation. There are an estimated 3 million girls in Africa at risk of undergoing female genital mutilation every year.

What fuels FGM?

The evils and consequences are better known to those who have it and their close family members. Consequently, continued practice cannot be attributed to ignorance of the harmful effects.  Culture and religion are the main culprits. The US State Department opines that erroneous beliefs that religion supports FGM are the main reasons the practice has gained universal acceptance in the Horn of Africa nation. Culture also bolsters religion in that girls are taught that FGM will help them preserve virginity and thus maintain family honor.

Lawlessness and terrorism aggravate the situation

Since the early 1990s, Somalia has never had a stable government. With time, it became the sanctuary and hideout for terrorists fleeing from war elsewhere. Today, Alshabab, an Al-Qaeda affiliated terrorist organization, controls a lot of territory where it practices a strict and radical form of Islam. The weak government in Mogadishu, which often disintegrates due to clan rivalry and has to be protected by African Union forces, cannot enforce any anti-FGM regulations. How can it even contemplate that when FGM is a national practice?

No overnight solutions are expected

With this background, it is easy to understand why FGM will not end overnight in Somalia. In the words of a Somali woman who talked to UNICEF, “I want to abandon circumcision, but only when the entire community does so; I don’t want to be the only one going against the social norms.”

©EthLeen

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The World Health Organization (WHO) asserts that global birth rates have either stagnated or decreased among teenagers since 1990. However, this does not mean that the war against teenage pregnancy has been won. 15-19 year olds still account for 11% of all births on the planet. It is important to study these statistics with a view of understanding the problem in the context of women empowerment.

Birth rates for teenagers are higher in some areas

Developing nations account for 95% of the 11% global birth rate for adolescents. On average the global birth rate is 49 for 1000 girls aged between 15 and 19 years. However, in some countries, especially those in Sub-Saharan Africa, the rate can be as high as 299 births 1,000 girls.

The underlying reasons

Most of these cases are as a result of early marriages and issues revolving around poverty. While a number of teenage pregnancies may be planned for and therefore wanted, most of them occur due to carelessness and failure to use contraceptives. Poverty also leads some young girls to prostitution or exploitation by men, which is a recipe for early pregnancies.

What about contraceptives

Availability and use of contraceptives in teen pregnancy is also an issue that needs to be addressed. Generally, there is very little sex education because guardians lack time or the topic is considered a taboo. Concerning contraceptive use and other issues in adolescent pregnancy, WHO has this to say:

They may feel too inhibited or ashamed to seek contraception services; contraceptives may be too expensive or not widely or legally available. Even when contraceptives are widely available, sexually active adolescent girls are less likely to use them than adults. Girls may be unable to refuse unwanted sex or resist coerced sex, which tends to be unprotected.

The consequences

Unfortunately, teenage pregnancy “… remains a major contributor to maternal and child mortality, and to the cycle of ill-health and poverty” according to WHO, babies born to teenage mothers are at risk of health complications such as low birth weight or even being stillborn. Moreover without the support of the new mother’s parents, the child will have a difficult time growing because the mother has no economic power. Further, such a girl rarely has education and skills that can give her employment. She ends up depending on other people or reverts to prostitution, in which case she might give birth to more children.

©EthLeen

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Numbers don’t lie

One is tempted to ask, like one writer posed in More, “Is India the rape capital of the world?” Did you know that a third of rape victims in India are below 18 years? A woman gets raped in India after every 20 minutes! Between 2009 and 2011, 68,000 cases of rape were reported in the country.

Annual Rape Festival

The Annual New Delhi Rape Festival has a prize of US$1,000,000. When a 6-15 year old girl is asked to run so that mature men can run after her and defile her for fun, how do we consider that a society that values women?

Raping Women in Buses

The world listened and watched with consternation the unfortunate event of a woman who was raped in a public service bus. The rapists committed this atrocity against an innocent lady and executed their evil with so much brutality that one would have thought they knew her personally.

Many more cases

There is no end to the cases of rape that emanate from India. There are stories of young girls being raped and then hanged. Recently, a 74 year-old nun was raped by six men. This epitomizes a deeper problem than that which courts and jails can solve. When analyzing these cases, it is important to remember that the reported ones are a very small percentage of actual occurrences.

©EthLeen

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In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, “life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement” regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.

The American Dream is rooted in the Declaration of Independence, which proclaims that “all men are created equal” with the right to “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

During my research it was interesting to find that the American dream and its success has many different definitions. Many studies have found that African Americans equate American dream success with obtaining wealth. Although, other studies show that African-American feel that the American dream has nothing to do with money. It is about finding your walk of life – the purpose that makes you whole and complete. Taking the path of your own choice is their ultimate definition of the American dream.

Other African-American feel that the American dream is not meant for them and is most assuredly not going to be a part of their children’s future. They feel this is due to the continued inequalities in education, housing and job market opportunities. If these three factors do not change the American dream will be out of reach for not only themselves but their children and their children’s children. They feel the American dream is something they can only read about. Of course, this once again brings up the question of what is your definition of the American dream. If in this group the American dream means only wealth than their responses may very well be a reality.

Another study conducted in 2010 shows that African-American are less likely to top their parents’ income and wealth than the white population and African-Americans are more likely to be stuck at the bottom of the income ladder or fall out of the middle. This study couldn’t measure African-Americans mobility in the upper income levels because the number was too small.

No matter how many studies are done and how many opinions you find the American dream for African-Americans and all people comes down to how you define it. If wealth is the only factor, then African-Americans may be at a disadvantage, but as other African-Americans have expressed the American dream to them has to do with finding their true purpose in life that makes them whole and complete. In that sense they are truly rich.

©EthLeen

The post What “American Dream Success” Meant for Africans appeared first on Alaafia African Family Resource Center.

Stealing the innocence of a young generation

It is for this reason that child marriage is an evil that should be condemned by all, including men. According to UNICEF, “Marriage before the age of 18 is a fundamental violation of human rights.” There is no justification whatsoever for this cruelty to children who should be playing and studying for a better future. UNICEF further asserts,

Child marriage often compromises a girl’s development by resulting in early pregnancy and social isolation, interrupting her schooling, limiting her opportunities for career and vocational advancement and placing her at increased risk of domestic violence.

Global child marriage statistics

The International Centre for Research on Women, while summarizing data presented by UNICEF in 2014, indicates that Niger had the highest prevalence of child marriages in the world. Specifically, 75% of girls in this Western African country are married before attaining the age of 18 years. This trend appears to affect the developing world more considering that a third of girls become wives before they reach eighteen years.

Child marriages spawn illiteracy

Back to Niger. Girls Not Brides, a website that advocates for the end of child marriage, opines that is some areas like Diffa the prevalence of this evil is 89%, almost universal. This in turn impacts education since 81% of women who are aged between 20 and 24 years are illiterate. This is essentially an entire generation of young girls, robbed of childhood, youth and education.

Acting to stem the tide

The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) has been partnering with the Niger government since 2012 in an initiative called Action for Adolescent Girls, to curb the vice. One of the main targets is to lobby the government to change the legal age for marriage from 15 to 19 years. Other reasons for this practice, according to UNICEF, are “poverty, the perception that marriage will provide ‘protection’, family honour, social norms, customary or religious laws that condone the practice, an inadequate legislative framework and the state of a country’s civil registration system.”

© EthLeen

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When she was asked if she ever thought she would become pregnant as a teen she stated that she never thought she would be “one of those girls.” She thought she was much smarter than that.

She was asked if she was using protection with her boyfriend. She stated that she was never on birth control. She knew she and her partner were taking a risk, but they still didn’t do anything to protect themselves.

When asked how her friends and family react when they found out about her pregnancy, she stated that most of her friends were shocked, they knew she was having sex, but thought she was taking care of protecting herself. Her family was also shocked, but very supportive.

When asked in what ways teen parenthood is different from what she thought it would be she stated, it is very difficult for me because I have to balance out all of my responsibilities. I am trying to stay in college while at the same time finding ways to have quality time with my son and finding time to study.

She was asked, “What do you wish you knew before you got pregnant?” She stated she wished she would’ve realized that once you have a child it’s no longer about you. It’s all about them. She stated further, “I was still a kid myself, I feel like I robbed myself my own childhood.”

When asked why she wanted to share your story with other teens, she replied, “Although pregnancy rates have gone down it is still an issue and I want to make young girls realize what a huge responsibility it is. Once you have a child everything is on you, you can’t run to mom and dad for help.”

Lastly, she was asked if she thought the way teen pregnancy is presented in pop culture is positive or negative. She stated that she felt it has both negative and positive effects. She has watched these show’s and can relate to some of the girls. The positive aspects are the way they show real life stories and let girls know that teen pregnancy is no joke.

On the other hand, she hopes that girls are not trying to get pregnant to get on television or think to themselves as they watch the show that it’s really not that bad. They do not know the reality of the situation until they have lived it themselves.

©EthLeen

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