Choice is captivating. Marrying choice to freedom, we elevate the power to choose to an inalienable right. Thus, the sexual revolution was born on the wings of freedom and choice with its emphasis on an array of sexual behaviors from which any man or woman, girl or boy, could simply choose.

And with a sexual revolution came sex education. In 1970, a training session in Philadelphia for Planned Parenthood staff concluded with a day-and-a-half marathon of films and discussion. The goal of these trainings? "To lead to desensitization of anxieties surrounding sexual behavior... with a resultant development of understanding and tolerance of the range of sexual behavior."

For over 20 years, this "tolerance" formed the foundation of sex education programs supported by Planned Parenthood. They were all about choice... a child's right to choose sex from a "range" of behaviors... given the "tools" of contraception. And if it didn't work out, there was always one more choice.

Planned Parenthood has grown up on choice. It cut its teeth on choice.

Thus, it is either surprising, alarming or amusing to watch them conduct a war against choice. This war can be traced back to 1980 when U.S. Senator Jeremiah Denton won congressional approval of the Adolescent Family Life Act (AFLA). Designed as an "almost exact mirror alternative" to Planned Parenthood's Title X funding, AFLA set a new course for sex education. Program objectives emphasized adoption, parental involvement, abstinence from sexual intercourse, and pro-family education for teenagers.

Well... that was just a little too much choice for Planned Parenthood to handle. It geared up to undo the harm of excess choice. In Congress, it fought to limit and ultimately decrease AFLA funding at the same time that it sought increases in Title X funding. It continued to exploit its own federal funding streams flowing from over 100 different laws. In the battle between U.S. funding of Planned Parenthood-style programs and abstinence programs, they had a funding advantage by one report of at least 75:1.

agapepress