sex education

As I mentioned, I turned in my research paper about sex education in Guanajuato the other day. I just wanted to reflect a little on the situation and thought that it might interest some of you.

Guanajuato is one of the most conservative and religious states in Mexico, with around 98% of the population identifying themselves as Catholic. PAN (the ruling party, National Action Party, and the most conservative) dominates Guanajuato politically and is deeply tied to the church.

Although abortion is illegal in Mexico, each state has the power to decide if abortion is allowed under certain circumstances, such as health risks to the mother. While many states legislatively provide for as many as six conditions where abortion is permitted, GTO is one of two states that allows only for the most restrictive of conditions - when the mother has been raped. However, in reality, a legal abortion has never been performed in GTO. One of the organizations I gathered information from defended a mentally ill woman who was raped and impregnated while working as a maid. When her mother found out what had happened and went to the authorities, attempting to seek an abortion, they were repeatedly pushed away and told not to pursue the matter. By the time they obtained authorization for the daughter to obtain the abortion, it was too late. In addition, large rates of human rights abuses have been documented, particularly against women. Hundreds of women have been killed within the home in the last five years in GTO.

Formal sex education is almost non existent in Guanajuato. When a law was passed two years ago that would provide all Mexican students with a book about sex education, Guanajuato fought forcefully against its implementation. There is one location where citizens can obtain free HIV/AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infection tests and condoms (the hospital) but many do not go for fear of being seen by friends/family (remember, GTO is tiny), being interrogated, etc. A large majority learn sex education on the streets, were numerous and potentially dangerous myths are passed along, such as the myth that contraction of an STI will lead to death.

Guanajuato as a state has the third highest rates of pregnancy among adolescents in all of Mexico. I know countless youth who are already parents or have children on the way. It is not at all uncommon for 18 year olds to be married with children, and everyday I pass young mothers on the street, who truly look like children themselves. My guy friend told me the other day that although he and his girlfriend normally use condoms , they don't while she is on her period (Of course, this is a completely unreliable method of birth control).

To make matters worse, government officials have openly denounced condom usage, saying it is not safe, and have called campaigns spreading knowledge about HIV/AIDS as "promoting homosexuality." The government does not release accurate information about infection rates, making it nearly impossible to make the reality of the situation clear to citizens. Last year, government publications identified only 30 people in the entire state of GTO as having contracted HIV. It is no surprise that many people here think they cannot be affected and that they will never contract anything. Aside from this type of mentality, which of course exists to a degree in the U.S., one cannot expect a population of youth to perceive a threat if they are being told it does not exist.

This goes on and on and on. Absolutely terrifying and the possibility of any improvement seems bleak. I think at this point what would improve the situation most would be these developments:

1. The church and the government genuinely untie themselves from one another.
2. I would say vote a liberal party into office, but this is much more complicated than we can ever imagine, given that the liberal party that was previously in office and more or less held the perfect dictatorship for more than 70 years (so let's not even count this as number 2)
3. Mexican people and the international community demand the fulfilment of the protection of their health promised by their government and constitution.
4. Mexican people and the international community work independently of the government to promote sex education and the protection of civil rights.