Kentucky High School Rejects "Safe Sex" Brochures, Pamphlets Targeting Gay, Lesbian Teens

Administrators at Scott County High School in Georgetown, Ky., on Friday at a health fair asked an area HIV/AIDS service group not to display four brochures that either contained information about "safe sex" or were targeted at gay or lesbian teenagers, according to group members, the AP/Louisville Courier-Journal reports. Cathy Cox, executive director of Lexington, Ky.-based AIDS Volunteers, said that the organization also was told to remove any materials that included the gay pride flag or information about "alternative lifestyles," according to the AP/Courier-Journal. Doug Southworth, the school's principal, said that he instructed a teacher to tell the group to remove from their health fair table a brochure titled "Safer Sex Can Be Fun," which he said had graphic drawings of gay sex, but he said that he was not aware of any other brochures being removed. Southworth added that he believes it is inappropriate to hand out in a school setting brochures promoting sex or safe sex, according to the AP/Courier-Journal. Cox said that the brochure Southworth questioned was targeted at an adult audience and had been placed on the table by accident by a volunteer but was later removed by staff members when they realized the error. However, Cox said that a teacher also removed brochures titled, "Young and Gay: Protect Yourself," "Lesbians and HIV: Are You at Risk?" and "Safer Sex, Better Too." Brochures containing safe sex information that were not specifically targeted at gay or lesbian teens were not removed from the table, Cox said, adding that all of the brochures displayed are appropriate for teenagers. Cox added that she is unsure why the group was asked to attend the student health fair if safe sex information is prohibited at the school (AP/Louisville Courier-Journal, 11/23).

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