#TalkingIsPower Has Never Been More Important

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#TalkingIsPower Has Never Been More Important

May 10, 2022
A photo of the backs of a mom and daughter hugging.

The timeliness of this year’s #TalkingIsPower campaign was underscored by last week’s breaking news, as threats to abortion and other reproductive health care make it even more important that young people have adults they can turn to for accurate, reliable information on how to keep themselves safe and healthy. As our recent polling finds, eight in 10 adults (80%) say they have someone in their lives they can talk to about sex and relationships, and nearly as many (77%) say they have access to accurate and reliable information about birth control. #TalkingIsPower emphasizes the importance of being that someone for young people. 

Decades of research support the benefits of comprehensive, inclusive sex education, and the lasting harm of programs that exclude and erase LGBTQ identities. Nonetheless, only 33 states require sex education to be taught in schools. Of those, only 10 include instruction that affirms and supports LGBTQ youth; eight others explicitly require sex education programs to include anti-LGBTQ messages. 

School should be an affirming space, where every young person is able to get the accurate, inclusive sex education they need to have a healthy future. But schools cannot do this work alone. Most adults say they have someone they can talk to about sex and relationships; now they can be that someone for the young people in their lives. Visit powertodecide.org/talkingispower for tips on how to start the conversation, listen with an open heart, and most importantly, keep talking. Talking is power.
 
Plus, help us spread the word! Check out our #TalkingIsPower toolkit for shareable graphics, sample social content and more! You can also visit the campaign landing page at powertodecide.org/talkingispower for more information on how you can get involved and start talking today.