Safe Sex: Why is it important to talk about?
Golden Valley Student holding a condom.
While it may seem that sex is talked about often amongst high schoolers, the reality is that it is often a hushed topic. Golden Valley’s The Grizzly Gazette asked our community to talk about their opinions on sex, contraception, and sex education offered to students.
An anonymous student from Golden Valley believes that sex is rarely talked about; most importantly, safe sex. “The education system does a poor job in educating teens to have safe sex and how to stay protected from the high risks of various STDS,” they expressed.
Preventing the risks that come with sex is a big deal. Sex can have many negative outcomes that are best to prevent rather than try to come back from. Some examples are getting pregnant and STDs.
“I think contraceptives are a great way for those to stay protected during sex, and it decreases the risk of potentially getting STDs while also encouraging those to stay safe,” another anonymous student conveyed.
Whether someone has or hasn’t had sex, it is crucial to understand the anatomy of women and men, and understand how to properly use protection such as condoms and birth control. Though STDs and pregnancies come from sex, teens should not be told that being celibate is the only way “stay safe.” It is a natural thing that will possibly happen one day for most, it’s how everyone came into this world.
A staff member stated that, “While parents would be against having clinics separate from the health office, clinics should come to the health office to bring information for kids to come and get help.” This makes perfect sense to many because people on our campus want to remain private in their lives while also getting help.
Another thought this source added is that sex, contraception, and birth control should be talked about more in depth in health classes and biology. Also, boys should know about periods and how they affect the women in their lives. As humans with our reproductive and ‘sexual’ organs, students need to know what our own bodies do and what other bodies do. Teens all need to be more open and aware about these things.
All students should have a more in depth understanding of sex. Another student source said, “Sex is sex, just don’t get pregnant at a young age if you don’t want to and make sure both people are okay with it.”
It can be a bit of a taboo topic that isn’t talked about openly since some cultures or parents have strong opinions about what their kids hear and know about sex.
All of our sources on campus stated that they believe it should generally be an open subject that everyone is comfortable with learning about on campus. Nothing about human bodies should feel weird to talk about in a class setting or talked about seriously with friends.
In an article from the New York Times, they explained, “Almost all of the 2,650 students at that school have received parental approval to sign up for the health-clinic services.” This shows that parents want their children protected whether they know they’re having sex or not.
The article also claims 65% of the respondents to a survey said that contraceptives should be available for students at school and due to access to these services, 22.5% pregnancies and complications were prevented.
No matter who is having sex, everyone should realize that it is perfectly fine to be not only curious, but also experience new things. Always, always remember to stay safe, protection is key, and always ask for consent!
Giovanni Becerril age 18 is a Staff Writer on the Community News Team. He is a Senior at Golden Valley High School (12th grade). He is a Amature Skateboarder here in Santa Clarita and has been awarded for skateboarding competitions. He's passionate about writing about skateboarding. He started skateboarding when he was 13 and i found it fun and exciting since.
Giovanni wants more people to know whats going on or learn more about the community. Hobbies he loves to do is art, running, skateboarding, snowboarding and, camping. He loves art since you can express who you are and what you like with art. Running helps him clear his mind and a good exercise routine. Skateboarding and snowboarding, to him, makes him feel happy and excited for a new day.
Haylie Celeste Adame is a Managing Editor for Community News, and is a junior here at Golden Valley. Though she doesn't have much experience with campus involvement, she continues to spread positivity while in GV. She is passionate about writing stories on Community News Team because of the huge potential and range of stories that can be written. Also, she is very passionate about learning the reason behind things rather than the topic itself, and finds it very interesting.
To her, being a student journalist is having fun, giving information on serious or interesting topics, and being able to be flexible while being collaborative. This really matters not only because it is a good skill to have but also because it’s something new to be in and experience. She loves baking, her family, and school (sometimes). She has the best boyfriend in the world who she is so crazy about. She is going to be having a little brother in about two months.
