In 2009 the El Paso Texas City Council voted to offer health benefits for unmarried and same sex partners of municipal workers. The policy took effect in 2010. As soon as council members approved the measure, some religious groups began trying to repeal it. They gathered enough signatures to put the issue on the November ballot. Ever since then this has been a ongoing battle between traditional values and defining who is classified as a couple. The whole Re-call issue is an ordeal between El Paso’s Mayor John Cook and city representatives Susie Byrd and Steve Ortega and Pastor Tom Brown, who currently runs Word of Life church. Mayor Cook and city representatives felt this petition to override the health benefits sets El Paso back as being progressive and equally diverse and thus, made the decision to overrule the ordinance voters had approved. Cook’s defense to proceed with this overruling was because he argues that Brown and supporters gathered signatures in the church and at local businesses, a practice that Cook argues is prohibited under state law.

This issue is very complex because of the Mayors decision not to listen to voters ordinance and attempt to stop the petition, But this decision is based off the fact that people are losing their health benefits for their sexual orientation. El Pasoan’s need to voice out there opinion to show city council and Pastor Brown supporters what the people think is most reasonable. There has not been much visible support for Cook and the representatives who seem to be getting targeted by the Re-Call supporters. This issue is controversial because churches want to define who is married and who can get benefits. We as a new generation of young open minded people who don’t agree with backwards traditional moral values controlling peoples personal life and want equality for all, We need to make awareness of this issue and help make El Paso a city that welcomes all people regardless of their status.

The Texas Tribune in the New York Times posted an article about this ongoing policy issue and makes it out as a pursuit of our liberalism. This article describes this ordeal as
“dividing a city that prides itself as a liberal Democratic stronghold. For some, it is a symbolic struggle over El Paso’s identity. For others in this deeply religious and largely Latino city, the fight is one that city leaders brought upon themselves and have badly bungled.”

This is true because El Paso has a unique cultural that has very different viewpoints, such as a college town full of young people who define their own lives and then there are the traditional family lifestyle that has the moral basis of our city’s identity. A diverse life style can happen and people may live in accordance if they can have leaders who make equality available for everyone and not define someone “not worthy” of getting rightfully due benefits.

This article also points out that “Ms. Byrd said the move stemmed from a conversation she and other council members had with a gay high school student who said he did not feel welcome in El Paso.” With a positive outlook from our city leaders and a town where their university has much pride in supporting diversity and high school students being concerned about the same issues make this town more prone to progressive change.

As part of the CAMI Texas Freedom Network student chapter at UTEP, it is a big goal for my organization to voice our opinion and make awareness of Cook's decision and explain to people why overruling the people's petition was a brave and rightful thing to do. In the near spring (when the next hearing will be happening) the TFN student chapter plans on hosting events and assemblies to advocate equality for LGBT and unmarried couples.

Here is the link to the NY Times artice: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/02/us/in-el-paso-a-storm-over-benefits-for-gay-partners.html

In 2011 I was honored to become an intern with the Texas Freedom Network as part of the Cultural Advocacy Mobilization Initiative (CAMI)and was able to attend the Urban Retreat in Washington, DC with Advocates for Youth. Over a few months I was able to bcome part of grassroots organizing and was made aware and a part of issues that deal with young people and their well-being. I feel liberated to be able to work on many issues such as supporting comprehensive sex ed, fighting for a HIV/AIDS free generation, and LGBTQ rights.

During my first semester as co-president of the Texas Freedom Network student chapter at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) my fellow members and I have been part of many events that have raised awareness of health wellness and supporting the fight against HIV/AIDS. In October El Paso held its annual AIDS WALK event which is an event to raise awareness and funds for medications, food pantries, doctors, transportation and everyday items needed for patients and their families. The experience was warming and had very positive energy within the park. The TFN student chapter tabled at this event and handed out our condoms from the Great American Condom Campaign and those were a big hit! It was being a part of this event that made me feel responsible for raising the awareness of community that wants to see an AIDS free generation.

We also tabled during “Love Your Body” week at my university and this was a great event to promote safe sex as a way of loving your body. TFN handed out condoms and gave statistics on teen pregnancy and STI rates in Texas. These events are very good for us because the TFN Student Chapter gets to hear actual voices from students who agree that abstinence-only programs don’t work. Young people need to hear about ways to protect themselves and have access to health clinics and accessories like condoms and birth control.

Our TFN student chapter tabled on a weekly basis and informed students of the current statistics from the effects of abstinence-only programs that are being thought in Texas. We have heard many students agree with us and this is possible through tabling and signing petitions, (and of course handing out our Trojan condoms!) We now can see that a majority of people who have came up to our table agree with teaching young people comprehensive sex-ed because it befits their well-being and promotes health along with a start to a bright and fulfilling life.

Starting in the spring semester, TFN plans on being part of many more events that have to deal with youth’s issues and defending civil liberties like LGBTQ equality. I feel blessed to be part of such a wonderful opportunity and feel part of the solution. Even though there is much work needed still, I am willing to devote my time and positive energy to help raise awareness of the dangers of abstinence-only programs, advocate for the separation of church and state and proudly defend civil liberties!

Please become a fan of our TFN University of Texas at El Paso Student Chapter Facebook Page!

Mackenzie Massey is the President of the Texas Freedom Network Student Chapter at the University of Texas at Austin and is a member of the Texas Student Leadership Council, the Texas portion of Advocates for Youth's Cultural Advocacy and Mobilization Initiative.

World AIDS Day activities at UT Austin in the past have existed, but in 2011 I wanted to do it bigger and better than ever before. I knew the trick to this would be advanced planning, collaboration with many other organizations, and some solid fundraising.

In late September I met with my friend Ana Laura and we started brainstorming. After months of hard work the big day came, we raised almost $2,000 to put towards our event, and it was a HUGE success!

For more information about the day's events, check out our World AIDS Day coverage from KUT!

World AIDS Day at UT Austin included:
+ Free HIV Testing
+ Free food and prizes
+ A student organization fair of 13 diverse organizations that covered different aspects of the HIV epidemic including: literacy, food security, public health, prevention programs, education, sex education policy, poverty and international aid funding.
+ Red HIV awareness ribbons
+ An interactive sex education trivia wheel
+ Free condoms and lube
+ An expert panel discussion focusing on AIDS and Criminality
+ A resource fair of local direct service organizations in the Austin community
+ A banner signing campaign, with red finger paints!
+ Petitions for comprehensive sex education
+ Press coverage from 6 media outlets including Fox 7, KVUE, KUT, and Univision

After having been tested I was escorted to the waiting room. The room was filled with couples and singles with a big clock hanging over the TV, an episode of "Glee" was playing. I remember sitting in that waiting room thinking, "What if I have HIV?" and "I wonder how many people in this room might receive that news." It was a scary feeling. Fifteen minutes passed and the nurses escorted me to another room. My results were negative, I could breathe easy.

I know it's a scary thing to think about, but if you've never been tested, please consider it. If testing sounds too expensive, try searching online for a free clinic. If that's not an option, remember World AIDS day and the day after your local Pride parade are two times a year, usually six months apart, that you can be tested free at most local clinics.

Get tested and play safe, your future self will thank you.

This past Tuesday was a momentous victory for the LGBT community in Houston. Among the victors were Mayor Annise Parker, Ellen Cohen, and the first gay man elected to city council, Mike Laster. There was, however, one loss that stood out. Houston Independent School District Board Member Manuel Rodriguez Jr had been in a tight race with challenger Ramiro Fonseca, when in a last minute attempt to put himself over the edge Rodriguez issued an anti-gay mailer to his constituents. The mailer highlighted Fonseca's history of advocacy for the LGBT community and an endorsement given by the Houston GLBT Political Caucus. Rodriguez's brochure went on to claim that Fronseca had "spent years advocating for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, transgender rights … not kids." As if the brochure was not enough, Rodriguez had been quoted as referring to the LGBT community as "those people." Seeing as how just this past year Rodriguez had voted in favor of changing HISD's non-discrimination policy to better protect LGBT students, many within the community were shocked. 

Rodriguez won his re-election by 24 votes. The community was outraged. This past Thursday leaders within the LGBT community of Houston rallied HISD Gay Straight Alliance students and spoke before the Board Members. Along with others, I had decided it was my duty as an LGBT youth leader to speak up against this horrendous act. 

This is my speech. 

My name is James Lee, I’m a student leader at the University of Houston. Though my name may not give it away, I'm Latino. Here in Texas, especially in Houston, our community has a strong and respected presence but it wasn’t always this way. There was a time when Latinos were the target of blatant bigotry, and as you heard from students earlier, there are still those who discriminate against us today.

Though I am Latino I also identify with a second community, the LGBT community. Just as the Latino community continues to defend itself from those who seek to demean or degrade us by referring to us as "those people", so too does the LGBT community.

Growing up, my mother and father always taught me to be respectful of others and when in a competition “focus on the issues.” Earlier this week, a brochure that singled out the LGBT community was distributed to voters. Since the incident occurred, there has been questioning as to why it was perceived as offensive.

Just as it would be inappropriate to list his Latino identity as a reason for voters not to support your opponent, so too would it be inappropriate to list their identity as a member of the LGBT community.

This incident is exactly the type of petty politics our city should avoid. I can see this kind of behavior happening on the school yard but to have it occur between those who seek to lead our schools, that is unacceptable.
We must lead by example, and if we expect our students to respect one another in a city as diverse as ours we must start from the top. Members, I implore you, help unite our communities by becoming the solution, not the problem.

Many have called for his resignation and Board Members have called for modifications to their ethics policies in order to ensure this kind of behavior is never allowed on the Board again. The fate of Manuel Rodriguez's political future has yet to be determined.

There is a turning tide in Texas and it’s in the direction of comprehensive sex ed according to The Texas Tribune, a leading news source covering state politics.
Of course, this significant improvement in sex ed policies across the state didn’t happen by accident. These changes are the product of a concerted effort by the Texas Freedom Network, Advocates for Youth and many other dedicated groups and individuals.

Folks like Susan Tortolero, the director of the University of Texas' Prevention Research Center in Houston, have even created comprehensive sex ed curriculum that is being adopted and implemented in some of the most unlikely of places. Better sex ed is beginning to be found in the suburbs of Houston and as far west as Midland, a typically conservative area. According to Tortolero:

“It’s like we’re beyond this argument of abstinence, abstinence plus. Districts want something that works.”

While many people still believe that talking about contraception gives children permission to have sex, or even encourages them to do so, Tortolero says research shows that teaching them about condoms and birth control actually delays sexual initiation.

“The more you know about your body, how to make better decisions and choices, the better decisions that adolescents make,” she said, adding, “The more we demystify it, the more we talk about it, the better.”

The Texas Freedom Network’s School Health Advisory Council (SHAC) initiative has been a significant part of this growing success. TFN is working with local activists across the state who serve on SHACs to advocate for comprehensive sex ed at the district level. As a result, sex education has been dramatically improved for 250,000 public school students in Texas. A number of our Texas CAMI youth participants are also serving on their SHACs and making a difference in places like Brownsville, Houston, Austin and El Paso.
Even the editorial board of The Houston Chronicle has caught on to this recent success to reform sex ed policy in Texas and recommends that the state continue to move in this direction.

There remain obstacles at the statewide level, despite this grassroots success. The Dallas Observer reports that Texas has declined to apply for Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) funding for the second year in a row. With the 3rd highest rate of teen births, and the 2nd highest percentage of repeat teen births, Texas sorely needs this federal funding for evidence-based programs.

Our expanded network of Texas Freedom Network Student Chapters, led by our CAMI youth members, has been an integral part of this movement for comprehensive sex ed. Some of the things they have accomplished so far include:

• Getting hundreds of Education Works petition signatures at petitions drives
• Hosting "Let’s Talk About Sex" film screenings on their campuses
• Tabling at various health fairs to grow membership and raise awareness
• Successfully lobbying Student Government Association at the University of Houston to pass a resolution in support of equal domestic partner benefits for faculty and staff
• Presenting as the only youth presenter on engaging young people in sex ed advocacy at the Texas Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy 2nd Annual Conference
And they have much more planned for the rest of the semester! I’ll update you again on the progress happening in Texas near the end of the year.

Monday

6:00 a.m. I wake up to do homework (mostly reading; upper level history courses require a lot of reading)
8:00 a.m. I wake up my daughter
8:30 a.m. We eat breakfast
10:00 a.m. I go to the university with Frida doing things (speaking to professors, making reservations, holding meetings) for the two organizations I am leading (Texas Freedom Network and Scorpion Historical Society)
12:00 p.m. I am home eating lunch with Frida
1:00 p.m. Frida is asleep and I am doing homework again
3:00 p.m. Frida wakes up from her “short” nap
4:00 p.m. We go outside to play or take photos with my camera
6:00 p.m. I read my history book aloud to Frida (Information is better retained when I hear myself reading material)
7:00 p.m. We eat dinner!
8:00 p.m. We watch Nick Jr or Yo Gabba Gabba (I have learned to love this show!)
9:30 p.m. Story Time! Frida and I sit on the rocking chair and read four books, two in English and two in Spanish (She loves Whoever You Are/Quienquiera Que Seas)

11:00 p.m. Frida is asleep
11:20-1:00 a.m. I am doing homework
1:15 a.m. I am asleep

More...

The Texas Tribune on what happens when you gut state family planning funding:

"Operating in a region with a limited donor base and high need for health services, Gonzales said, the [Texas] clinics have relied heavily on government financing. So when state cuts to family planning took effect in September, the Hidalgo County network lost a $3.1 million contract and was forced to lay off half its staff and shut down four of its facilities. (Another five clinics have closed around the state since the beginning of September.) Gonzales estimated that the closures would affect approximately 16,000 low-income men, women and teens in the Rio Grande Valley."

Read the full article here.

On Tuesday, October 11, Sting Radio, our university's radio, hosted College Radio Day. My organization, the Texas Freedom Network, had the chance to participate in this awesome event. We had a small petition drive for comprehensive sex education and it was a good turnout for the hour that we were there. We utilized petitions provided by Education Works. There were a little over 20 petitions signed. However, we did encounter some opposition! Some people believe that youth should know the consequences of having sex. Simple, if you become pregnant or acquire an sti or std, it is YOUR fault. It is very unfortunate to know that people think like that.

Texans, you can sign the petition here!
www.educationworkstexas.org/get-involved/petition.html


"The Education Works coalition believes teenagers need honest information to make responsible choices about sex. The Education Works coalition is working to ensure that schools teach sexual health with a medically accurate and balanced approach – teaching abstinence along with facts about contraception and responsible decision-making."






Link to Education Works:
www.educationworkstexas.org