Article and graphics by Indira D’Souza
Reproductive legal rights address an individual’s access to health care, birth control, abortion, pregnancy, and parental responsibilities. The ACLU identifies four key issues affecting reproductive freedoms in the United States: contraceptives (birth control), abortion, religion and reproductive rights, and abstinence-only curricula. Abstinence-only curricula often contains false or misleading information that leaves students unprepared to make decisions related to sex and reproduction. Research shows that giving young people information to make responsible decisions (such as proper contraceptive use and STD information) helps them to delay sex and protect their health. Teenagers should have access to factual information regarding their reproductive rights in the region where they live, as well as resources that are available to them. IANGEL’s Teen Information Project (TIP) aims to equip California teens with the knowledge they need to protect their health, understand their rights, and recognize the ever-changing laws and regulations surrounding reproduction.
What Legal Rights will Teens Learn About?
The original 1992 curriculum for the Teen Information Project was created by a partnership between the Reproductive Rights Committees of the San Francisco Women Lawyers Alliance and the Queen’s Bench Bar Association. This document contained detailed explanations of existing law and Supreme Court rulings which establish the rights to contraception, abortion, and reproduction. It also incorporated hypothetical situations for students to bring out discussion about the legal rights covered by the curriculum. IANGEL is updating the 1992 TIP curriculum with more current legal information and transforming the document into an engaging and informative presentation for teens.
The new 2021 Teen Information Project Curriculum addresses many important topics. The first is an outline of teen reproductive rights encoded in state and federal law. This includes the right to privacy, the right to contraception, the right to abortion, and the right to have a child or place one’s child for adoption. The second section describes important Supreme Court rulings and cases related to reproduction as well as the precedents set in cases like Roe v. Wade, Planned Parenthood v. Casey, and Griswold v. Connecticut. They will also learn how state law may provide stronger protection of privacy rights and how the rights of Californians may be better protected than those living in other states. The curriculum defines important legal terms, including: contraception, consent, abortion, and rape. Teens will learn about the responsibilities of parenting and the role of the father in a child’s life according to California law. The curriculum covers the process of placing a child for adoption and provides resources related to sexual assault and intimate partner violence. The presentation calls attention to recently enacted restrictions to contraception access and abortion care in different states. At the end of the curriculum, students will utilize hypothetical examples to apply legal rights in real-life situations and to spark important conversations about reproductive rights.
Why Should Teens Pay Attention?
State and federal laws governing reproductive health issues change frequently. The majority of states offer no constitutional or codified protection of abortion services. In fact, 12 states have laws that would ban abortion overnight if Roe v. Wade was overturned. California is one of only 14 states that legally protect the right to abortion. Power to Decide reports that “of the 66 million women of reproductive age living in the U.S., more than 20 million are in need of publicly funded contraception.” Currently, the biggest threats to contraceptive access are state policies that allow for exceptions to the Affordable Care Act mandate. These include religious accommodations for religious nonprofits and closely held corporations.
Federal laws upholding the right to abortion and other reproductive healthcare services are in jeopardy as of Summer 2021, due to the makeup of the U.S. Supreme Court and the widespread appointment of anti-choice judges by the previous administration. Because reproductive rights are often under attack in the United States, teens need to know about the legal protections that exist in their state as well as federally. If the law changes, teens must recognize their legal rights so they can understand the implications of increasing or decreasing access to reproductive healthcare.
What is the Goal of the Teen Info Project?
The Teen Information Project curriculum will be used to teach Bay Area teens about their legal reproductive rights. Trained volunteers and IANGEL staff will present this information to teens in the community and continue to facilitate important discussions about reproductive justice. The curriculum is currently slated to launch in Fall 2021 with Girls Inc. of the Island City, an organization working to empower young women by connecting them to resources that lead to their success. IANGEL will reach out to other after-school programs and local schools to integrate the Teen Information Project into curricula for middle and high school students. An additional goal is to create online modules so that the TIP curriculum can be utilized throughout California, providing the opportunity for teens across the state to become increasingly knowledgeable about their reproductive rights. With their education from the IANGEL Teen Information Project, California teens will be able to better navigate the complex terrain of reproductive health, understand related laws and legal protections, and make informed decisions about their bodies.