Abstinence at Harvard?
by Candice Watters on 03/23/2007 at 9:28 AM
"Harvard abstinence group fights against mindless sex on campus" reports The Boston Globe's news website boston.com.
From the looks of the story, it's not just mindless sex they're battling:
Harvard student Rebecca Singh said she was offended by a valentine the group sent to the dormitory mailboxes of all freshmen. It read: "Why wait? Because you're worth it."
"I think they thought that we might not be 'ruined' yet," Singh said. "It's a symptom of that culture we have that values a woman on her purity. It's a relic."
Others on campus have mocked the group. Murray said his friends take pleasure in loudly, and graphically, discussing their sex lives just to taunt him.
"On campus there is such a strong attitude of pluralism and acceptance, but then it doesn't extend to this," Kinsella said.
The message from the administration isn't much different. According to the story, Dr. David Rosenthal, director of Harvard health services, believes "students mistakenly think everyone on campus is having sex."
Are they?
The story continues, "The National College Health Assessment Survey, which included Harvard and hundreds of other campuses, found that about 29 percent of students reported not having sex in the past school year." That means 71 percent of students are. 71 percent.
And Rosenthal thinks that for them, "it is crucial to promote safety." Safety, as in, "be safe, stop having sex"? Doubtful. As Dr. Miriam Grossman reveals in her expose Unprotected, where sex on campus is concerned, latex and licentiousness is the name of the game. And if that's your idea of "safety," you may be in for some scary news at the student health center.
Rosenthal continues, "Some students may have a feeling that acknowledgment is condoning," he said, "and it's not."
As I discovered reading Grossman's book, Harvard's approach to the 71 percent of sexually active -- or in this case, hyperactive -- co-eds is a far cry from acknowledgment. I wonder which side of condoning the student-run porn magazine and the "Free Lube" day at the campus health center fall on.
I say good for the students -- seniors Sarah Kinsella and Justin Murray -- who've had the courage to stand against the status quo. I hope their True Love Revolution, as the group is called, will ennoble and maybe even add to that 29 percent.
1. Mandi said the following at 10:14 AM on Mar 23:
Yes, and dropping into university "health centres" these days would leave you wondering which side of "condoning" they're on too. The best thing for one's safety and health is to stay *away* from them!
2. Aaron said the following at 11:40 AM on Mar 23:
Kudos for these students! This is always refreshing to see, because I too, feel as though just about everyone is having sex except me at my college. I have no idea why students like Singh would be offended by the valentine they put out. The Abstinence goup is not geared just towards women as she assumed in her statement. Something else I don't understand is the people that mock those taking the stand. It makes no sense to degrade someone who has more self control than you. But I guess that all comes with being a Christian, and being persecuted for Christ is something I see as noble.
3. Jonathan from Canada said the following at 12:30 PM on Mar 23:
Haha, this was on Drudge yesterday.
I'm not sure if Boundless is aware of the sex culture on Ivy League campuses. It's pretty over the top, there's also naked parties, "advice" columns, "toys" sold at campus clinics, etc.
4. Gina said the following at 4:32 PM on Mar 25:
I'm not surprised by the offended attitude, Aaron. Saddened, but not surprised. I hear a lot of the "How DARE you preach to me about my personal life?" attitude these days. It's probably the fruit of years of being taught "No one has the right to impose their morality on you."
5. RAR said the following at 9:27 PM on Jun 6:
Lets see. If his helps anyone.
HARVARD was founded by people who live in Christ. Who spoke with Jesus, and lived His word -- the Bible.
1. Everyone has free choice. How about a dating group for those who choose to practice abstinence.