[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 432 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 432
Supporting the goals and ideals of the month of May as Sex Ed For All
Month: Equity and Access for All.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 22, 2023
Ms. Jayapal (for herself, Ms. Adams, Ms. Lee of California, Mr.
Cardenas, Ms. Clarke of New York, Ms. Crockett, Mr. Pocan, Ms.
Pressley, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Takano, Mr. Trone, Ms. Velazquez, Mrs.
Watson Coleman, and Ms. Williams of Georgia) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for
a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the
committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Supporting the goals and ideals of the month of May as Sex Ed For All
Month: Equity and Access for All.
Whereas Sex Ed For All Month is a nationwide observance that calls on people to
take action to invest so as to ensure all young people have access to
inclusive and honest sex education;
Whereas young people face vast systemic inequities and structural barriers to
ensuring their lifelong health;
Whereas racial disparities persist in young people's sexual health, highlighting
ongoing social inequities in access to sex education as well as sexual
health services;
Whereas access to quality information and education about young people's sexual
health is a critical step toward addressing disparities caused by
structural barriers;
Whereas, despite historic declines, the United States has the highest rate of
unintended teen pregnancy among comparable countries and limited
resources available for young parents;
Whereas young people aged 15 through 25 contract half of the 19 million sexually
transmitted infections each year, despite making up only a quarter of
the sexually active population;
Whereas young people under the age of 25 accounted for 1 in 5 new HIV
transmissions;
Whereas three-quarters of LGBT students report harassment, 56 percent report
feeling unsafe, and nearly a third skipped at least one day of school in
the month prior to reporting due to concerns for their safety;
Whereas approximately 1 in 3 young women in the United States experiences
physical, emotional, or verbal abuse from a dating partner;
Whereas sex education that includes information beyond abstinence has been found
to delay sexual intercourse, increase condom or contraceptive use,
reduce the number of partners among young people, and decrease physical
aggression with intimate partners;
Whereas young people who received sex education are 50 percent less likely to
experience an unintended pregnancy, 31 percent less likely to contract a
sexually transmitted infection, and more likely to delay sexual activity
and use contraception upon becoming sexually active;
Whereas sex education provides information about the prevention, treatment, and
care of pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections, and interpersonal
violence; the importance of consent as a basis for healthy relationships
and for autonomy in health care; sexual orientation, gender roles, and
gender discrimination; and the historical and current conditions in
which education and health systems, policies, programs, services, and
practices have uniquely adversely impacted Black, indigenous, Latinx,
Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander, and other people of color;
Whereas sex education promotes gender equity, and is inclusive of young people
with varying gender identities, gender expressions, and sexual
orientations; safe and healthy relationships; and racial equity ensuring
responsiveness to the needs of young people who are Black, indigenous,
and other people of color;
Whereas sex education promotes and upholds the rights of young people to
information that empowers them to make decisions about their bodies,
health, sexuality, families, and communities in all areas of life; and
Whereas May of each year is now recognized as Sex Ed For All Month: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) supports the goals and ideals of Sex Ed For All Month;
(2) calls on all public and elected officials to advocate
for and invest in sex education legislation;
(3) encourages State and local governments, including their
public health agencies, educational agencies, schools, and
media organizations to recognize and support Sex Ed For All
Month;
(4) commends the work of community and faith-based
organizations, State educational agencies, local educational
agencies, and health centers that are providing sex education
to young people;
(5) prioritizes sex education programs that are evidence-
informed, comprehensive in scope, confidential, equitable,
accessible, medically accurate and complete, age and
developmentally appropriate, culturally responsive, trauma-
informed, and resilience-oriented;
(6) discourages health education programs that withhold
health-promoting or life-saving information about sexuality-
related topics, including HIV; are medically inaccurate or
incomplete; promote gender or racial stereotypes or are
unresponsive to gender or racial inequities; fail to address
the needs of sexually active young people, pregnant or
parenting young people, survivors of interpersonal violence, or
youth of all physical, developmental, or mental abilities; fail
to be inclusive of individuals with varying gender identities,
gender expressions, and sexual orientations; or are
inconsistent with the ethical imperatives of medicine and
public health;
(7) recommends implementation of sex education in schools
and continued professional development for educators and
administrative staff that work with young people; and
(8) calls for all youth-serving professionals, educators,
and decision makers who impact the lives of youth to take
action to ensure access to inclusive and honest sex education
for all young people.
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