High School Health Clinics and Morality

In response to Laura Semans’ letter (Aug. 6), berating the San Diego School Board trustees for voting down the health clinics on campus, which would provide among other things family planning and dispensing of contraceptives (at the taxpayers’ expense), I say three cheers!

Secretary of Education William J. Bennett opposes these clinics and calls them an “abdication of moral authority.” He also says that some births may be prevented but asks the question--what lessons does it teach, what attitudes does it encourage, what behaviors does it foster?

I agree with the statement in Semans’ letter that teen-age pregnancy statistics are horrifying, but is providing contraceptives and counseling the best help we can give our young people?

Can’t we hold up a higher standard for them and expect our schools to once again teach values and give our children a basis for morality and character as the California education code requires?

As Eunice Kennedy Shriver, who has developed a program for young pregnant girls called A Community of Caring, stated so well: “Teen-agers want their parents, their teachers, their political leaders to stand up strong for values and this includes the values of love and sex.” Have we done that?

Each of us has the opportunity and responsibility to express our opinion on these school-based health clinics. Our Legislature has a bill before it right now, AB 4328 which would provide for these services. Write your state senator, State Capitol, Sacramento, 95814.

I would hope that our state political leaders and our school boards would provide a program with values--or will it be just the mechanical means to prevent pregnancy?

Our young people deserve more!

JUNE FAWELL

Rancho Palos Verdes