by Debra Hauser, Executive Vice President

Are you ready to help make history?

Today, Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) are introducing the Real Education for Healthy Youth Act, a new bill that lays out a comprehensive, age-appropriate, and holistic vision for sex education policy in the United States.

Ask your elected representatives in Congress to co-sponsor the Real Education for Healthy Youth Act today!

Among its many highlights, the Real Education for Healthy Youth Act:

• Recognizes young people’s right to sexual health information - the first time federal legislation has ever done so
• Prepares young people to make informed, responsible and healthy decisions about relationships and sexual health by including a comprehensive range of topics such as communication and decision-making skills; promoting safe and healthy relationships; and preventing unintended pregnancy, HIV, other STDs, dating violence, sexual assault, bullying, and harassment  
• Includes grants for comprehensive sex education programs for adolescents and young adults in institutions of higher education
• Requires all funded programs to be inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) and heterosexual youth and meet the needs of young people who are and are not sexually active 
• Highlights the importance of, and provides resources for, teacher training to ensure that our nation’s sex educators have the tools they need to provide the highest quality comprehensive sex education possible to our nation’s youth. 

We could never have reached this point without your help. Together, we advocated for years for the Responsible Education About Life (REAL) Act. Because of your hard work, the REAL Act passed "in spirit" with the Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) that came out of the new health care law.

The Real Education for Healthy Youth Act is the next step in our work together to advance the sexual health of young people in the United States. Our allies in Congress heard you loud and clear when you spoke up about what's missing in other federal programs (teacher training, programs for college youth, LGBT-inclusive programs, healthy relationships, etc.). Thanks to your efforts and their leadership, this bill has become a reality.

But our work to pass the Real Education for Healthy Youth Act is only beginning. Will you join us?

Take Action: Contact your Members of Congress today and tell them to co-sponsor the Real Education for Healthy Youth Act!

Despite having some of the worst sexual health outcomes in the developed world, thousands of young people across the U.S. are denied their right to comprehensive information and services. The continuation of ineffective and harmful abstinence-only-until-marriage programs simply cannot be tolerated, not now and not ever. Let's work together to provide young people with the real education they need to make healthy, responsible decisions about their lives.

In solidarity,

Debra Hauser

Executive Vice President

Advocates for Youth