Take Issue, Take Charge

The NYCLU is proud to participate in the ACLU’s grassroots organizing campaign, Take Issue, Take Charge. Over the coming months, we will engage in activities to stop government funding of ineffective and harmful abstinence-only-until-marriage education programs, and to promote comprehensive sex education.

On October 5, 2005, the RRP sent each school district in New York State* a letter calling upon that school district’s superintendent to support comprehensive sex education programming and to oppose abstinence-only sex education in his or her district. Signatories of the letters include the NYCLU, statewide advocacy groups (including NARAL Pro-Choice New York, the New York chapters of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Family Planning Advocates of NYS, the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice: New York, and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health), local organizations (including several Planned Parenthood affiliates, Westchester Progressive Forum, Buffalo Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Services, and Women’s and Children’s Hospital of Buffalo), and individual New York State residents.

This project brought together a broad coalition of supporters to send a compelling message to school superintendents that advocacy groups, students, parents, teachers, and taxpayers in nearly 200 districts around the state oppose abstinence-only sex education.

* This campaign did not target New York City school superintendents, as the RRP already has an ongoing campaign addressing this issue with NYC Schools Chancellor Klein; please click here to read about this campaign.

Click here to read more about the ACLU campaign.