Educating Minors

[pdx.mothernurture]

I was reading the thread about teen moms and I was thinking about how teens typically 'eat up' information on sex/sexual health and are also generally very impressionable. What kinds of things can we do to reach this age group and reach the next generation of parents before the pressure's on and time is of the essence? What kind of literature would be most useful? How do we ignite outrage, passion, questioning authority, independent thought? What ways might we suggest this be an excellent topic for writing, debate, theater, etc? It seems like some very teen-focused intactivist 'marketing' and hip slogans might be really useful.

What other information might circumcision info pair well with besides teen pregnancy & parenting? What about the boys...how do we teach them and help them cope and forgive and stimulate activism? Where should information/flyers be distributed? What public places do teens congregate in where you live? What kind of a low-budget event might draw attention? How could learning about circumcision be made fun and interesting for this age group? Contests? Games? Freebies? Prizes? Scholarship? What is this age group interested in? What motivates them? What would grab their attention? Food? Clothes? Celebrities? Cars? Gas Card?

What considerations do intactivists need to have about talking to this age group and how might parents be dealt with---especially if they're upset/angry because education results in kids demanding an explanation? Thoughts?

I was interested in activism myself at that age. Teens are invincible, after all. If you can get them interested in a cause, I think they have the potential to be very energetic educators, awareness-raisers, fundraisers, etc. This is an age group that frequently gets neglected when we focus on pregnant people but could ultimately make an even more significant difference because they're likely to be less defensive.

Just some thoughts...

Jen

[Monkeygrrl]

i talk about everything with my kids...from birth, to sex, to death - and everything in between...sometimes they listen, sometimes they dont...

for my almost 16yo - who is an advocate for equal rights and the military - it didnt take much for her to decide that she wasnt going to be circ'ing any children of hers...i talked about what was lost, the sensitivity that comes with the foreskin, the issues with length and growth that occur, and showing her a few pictures about what could happen with a circ (there was one where the child had to have skin grafts across his groin because of a flesh-eating bacteria infection)...who knows what will happen when she does actually have children, thats many years in the future (i hope!)...but she knows where to get the knowledge, and the seed has been planted...and she has 2 brothers with foreskins and no issues...so she has seen first hand that there is nothing special that needs to be done about it...and she has a father figure (not bio) who is getting ready to restore, in the hopes of reversing some of the damages done from his circ...

there is lots of educating happening at the moment...

i have approached it with the idea that she should be allowed to say what happens to her body...what gets pierced and tattooed should be her choice...shouldnt boys get the same priv? she agrees...let the child make the choice (whatever it may be) when they are no longer a child and understand the pros and cons of the decision...

peace...

[fruitful womb]

WOW Jen, you are on fire today! Good for you!
Here are a few good idea's I've been brewing:

What kinds of things can we do to reach this age group and reach the next generation of parents before the pressure's on and time is of the essence? What kind of literature would be most useful? How do we ignite outrage, passion, questioning authority, independent thought? What ways might we suggest this be an excellent topic for writing, debate, theater, etc? It seems like some very teen-focused intactivist 'marketing' and hip slogans might be really useful.

Any Human Rights issue is going to ignite them!
www.icgi.org isn't running right now (sucks) lets say it is..
1. print out the "Medicalization of Circumcision Time Line.
Go to a High School Campus, to talk to teens and suggest this "Human Rights Issue" would be a great debate or speech or even an Engligh research project they can use for school.

Well, My mind was flooding with ALL kinds of ideas a moment ago. It just shut down on me for some reason (probably has something to do with the kiddos in the background fighting.) I'll come back to this later...
Sorry so choppy.

[Super Pickle]

I totally agree with you, Jen, about the importance and efficacy of reaching young people about circumcision.

How about wearing a black T-shirt with a bold intactivist message printed in white lettering, and hanging out somewhere where there are typically a lot of teens? Such as a vintage clothing store, an independent record store, or a cafe near a college campus?

Also, if you have a baby-sitter once in a while, take the time to explain that your son is intact, and why s/he shouldn't retract your child's foreskin. When I was a teen, I baby-sat an intact boy, and do you know, all those years it never even occured to me that he had not been circ'ed, b/c I had always been told circ "had" to be done. I assumed he'd had some sort of accident or birth defect or something. I thought the world of that family, and if the mother had ever simply explained to me that he wasn't circumcised, I would have started questioning circ at 14 instead of at 24.

[pdx.mothernurture]

I was thinking about flyers and pamphlets specifically designed to catch teen's attention and written in a very down to earth way addressing circumcision from a perspective they'd care about...they're not going to care so much about diapering and natural parenting and such...but human rights and sex and parents forcing their beliefs/preferences on their children they probably would. Kwim? Maybe have some sort of contest, like, "Go online to abcdefg.com and fill out the form for more information for a chance to win a $20 gas card/starbucks gift certificate/free movie tickets." kind of thing. I'd also LOVE to see a website SPECIFICALLY designed for and aimed at teens with advice and ideas that they, as young people/students can do to raise awareness. Put all that energy and optimism to use---They can help change the world!

Jen

[Organicavocado]

Id love to see the debate entered into parenting classes. I want circumcision videos to be shown to high school sex ed/parenting classes.. I would have listened to that, and I would have spread the word. I think that would have been the best way to reach me.

[carriebft]

A concert dedicated to intactivism would be so cool.

We should also take a look at the MTV gameplan when they did (or do if they are still doing it?) that get out to vote campaign.