Contemporary Sexuality - March 2009 - (Page 11)

Quick Hits — Sex in the News CDC: Women and minorities are getting more STIs Reported cases of chlamydia and gonorrhea in the U.S. exceeded 1.4 million in 2007, according to an annual report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report, Sexually Transmitted Disease Surveillance, 2007, shows persistent racial disparities across these and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and a particularly heavy burden of disease among women. The report also finds continued increases in syphilis. Although once on the verge of elimination, syphilis began re-emerging as a threat in 2001 and increased 15 percent between 2006 and 2007. “The widespread occurrence of these diseases should serve as a stark reminder that [STIs] remain a serious health threat in the United States, especially for women and racial and ethnic minorities,” says John M. Douglas, Jr., MD, director of CDC’s Division of STD Prevention. Women continue to bear a disproportionate burden of the long-term health consequences of STIs. In 2007, the chlamydia rate among women was three times that of men (543.6 cases per 100,000 women, compared to 190 cases per 100,000 men). The gonorrhea rate was also higher among women (123.5 per 100,000 women, compared to 113.7 per 100,000 among men). Although the two diseases can be easily diagnosed and treated, they often have no symptoms and go undetected. If left untreated, up to 40 percent of chlamydia and gonorrhea infections in women can result in pelvic inflammatory disease — a condition that causes as many as 50,000 American women to become infertile each year. Untreated chlamydia or gonorrhea can also cause ectopic pregnancy, chronic pelvic pain, and other serious health problems. (CDC press release, Jan. 13) The full report is here: www.cdc.gov/std/ stats07 $50,000 if they didn’t take necessary measures to protect children and teenagers under age 18 from accessing content. But which sites have to regulate user access? Mitch Tepper, PhD, MPH, founder of the Sexual Health Network, worried that the government might come after him. Several plaintiffs, including Tepper, challenged COPA in court. In January, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected COPA. “For over a decade the government has been trying to thwart the freedom of speech on the Internet, and for years the courts have been finding the attempts unconstitutional,” says Chris Hansen, American Civil Liberties Union attorney. “It is not the role of the government to decide what people can see and do on the Internet. Those are personal decision that should be made by individuals and their families.” In 2007, a federal judge noted that filtering software does a better job controlling access to content than putting the burden on website owners. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling. By announcing its refusal to hear arguments in the case, the U.S. Supreme upheld the trial judge’s decision. Contemporary Sexuality has written about the issue frequently. A May 2006 story quoted both Tepper and Hansen. In that article, Hansen said that “some articles on the [Sexual Health Network] site that focus on ‘technique’ do ‘meet the language of the statute’ and therefore, might result in prosecution.’” That’s something Tepper won’t have to worry about any more. (Associated Press and Reuters, Jan. 21 and Contemporary Sexuality, May 2006) “It is not the role of the government to decide what people can see and do on the Internet. Those are personal decision that should be made by individuals and their families.” — Chris Hansen Obama rescinds ‘global gag rule’ for NGOs International nonprofits offering family planning services that include abortion can again receive funds from the U.S. government. Shortly after taking office, President Barack Obama rescinded the “global gag rule” that had been in effect since 1985, except during the eight years of Bill Clinton’s presidency. The policy prohibited the U.S. Agency for International Development from giving funds to nonprofits “to pay for the performance of abortions as a method of family planning, or to motivate or coerce any person to practice abortions.” In practice, that meant that NGOs working in poor countries couldn’t tell women where to find continued on page 14 Supreme Court rejects COPA law For more than a decade, the federal government has attempted to restrict Americans’ access to sexually oriented material on the Internet. In 1996, Congress passed the Communications Decency Act (CDA). After the U.S. Supreme Court declared the law unconstitutional, Congress tried again, enacting the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), a law that would fine websites up to March 2009 Vol. 43, No. 3 | www.aasect.org Contemporary Sexuality 11 http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats07 http://www.cdc.gov/std/stats07 http://www.aasect.org

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Contemporary Sexuality - March 2009 Contents Member Profile AASECT Conference Registration Form and Information Quick Hits: Sex in the News Book and Media Reviews Educational Opportunities

Contemporary Sexuality - March 2009

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