North Carolina: TV Stars Draw Teens to Abstinence Session

"Youth Explosion," an abstinence education outreach targeting inner-city youths, drew more than 500 people to Raleigh's Worthdale Community Center on Saturday. The community-based abstinence group Youth Awake paid for the event, which featured TV stars Lil' JJ of Nickelodeon and Cee Cee Michaela, formerly of the UPN/CW comedy series "Girlfriends." In her presentation to the teens, Michaela said she tried to emphasize the potential negative consequences of premarital sex, including pregnancy and STDs. "A lot of students were really personal and opened up about past mistakes they have made," she said. "I think it was a wonderful response, and it's good for them to talk with someone and know it's not too late to make the commitment to abstinence." "A lot of parents love this program," said Vernita Griffith, Youth Awake's executive director. "They wish they would have been exposed to something similar when they were growing up." Youth Awake presents events in Wake, Orange, Durham, Nash, and Edgecombe counties.

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