Quotes
Consensus Statement endorsers on why they are signing on for sexual health justice for you in state custody.
“Young people have the right to the information and skills they need to protect their health. This includes young people in state custody. We applaud this call to action and the concrete asks made by this coalition, and look forward to supporting this work however possible. ”
“The administration's effort to define sex in strictly binary terms is not only a human rights violation, it is also a violation of the laws of nature. Human beings do not come in only two genetic, physiological, or endocrinological profiles. All human beings have a right to equal treatment under the law, and this policy denies the existence and the self-determination of over a million people in the United States.”
— Woodhull Freedom Foundation
“Because we know that this is both moral and smart public policy.”
— Legal Action Center
“We believe all people have the right to empathetic, inclusive, accessible, equitable, and comprehensive sexual health resources and feel especially compelled to advocate for those who often feel powerless when it comes to decisions made around their bodies and on their behalf, so it's incredibly important to us that we stand with the coalition in supporting this type of advocacy!”
— The STD Project
“Jane's Due Process ensures legal representation for pregnant minors in Texas. We believe all young people should have bodily autonomy and be guaranteed unbiased sexual health services, even when they are detained by the federal government as in ORR care, or are receiving services through the state such as foster care.”
— Jane’s Due Process
“Because all youth need quality, inclusive and caring sexual healthcare, sex and relationships education and other related services, marginalized youth most of all.”
“I work with adolescent boys at-risk. Most have HIV. While we focus like laser beams on early childhood education, when it comes to boys at-risk who are doing sex work, we have little to offer. Educators need to study what links there might be between early childhood programs, and programs instituted by detention facilities that deal with older teenage boys. Why? Because it's about the cycles of recidivism; we need to connect the beginning of education with an end point that has to be about Juvenile Justice and it is NOT disconnected from Early Childhood education to develop an awareness of what works and what does not. Example: Boys who have done sex work arrive at detention with almost no knowledge of either sex or sexuality. How can this be? You have to look at who has access to information and who does not. The problems are cyclical. We need to wrap the beginning around the end to see the whole.”
— Tim BArrus
“Advocates for Youth champions policies and programs for young peoples' sexual and reproductive health and rights, including comprehensive sexuality education. This directly ties into our mission. Young people, especially marginalized youth, need access to comprehensive, medically-necessary, and accurate information.”
— ADVOCATES FOR YOUTH
“As a public health researcher, I cannot stand by when the sexual health rights of our youth are being violated. We have an obligation to protect and promote the health of all. This is especially true for the most disenfranchised and marginalized in our nation, black and brown, LGBTQ youth.”
— Bryn Davis, MSPH
Students for Justice in Palestine
“All people deserve accurate sexual health care.”
“Equality North Carolina advocates for the health, safety and equity of all LGBTQ North Carolinians, including youth who are in out-of-home custody of any kind.”
— EQUALITY NORTH CAROLINA
“Grossly disproportionate numbers of youth of color and LGBTQ youth are in state custody. It is our duty to ensure that they receive quality care and access to information and prevention and treatment of all illness especially ones related to sexual health.”
— MASS EQUALITY
“As a radical youth liberationist, it is important for me as a philosopher and as an activist to show support and solidarity for the bodily, medical, sexual, and gender autonomy of all youth, especially those most vulnerable to rights violations.”
— Kathleen O’Neal,
The Youth RightS Blog
“WV FREE believes that access to reproductive health care and education is a fundamental human right, essential for equality, health and dignity of all people especially young people.”
— WV FREE
“If we want our youth to grow up safe, healthy, and ready to succeed, then all youth need the knowledge and skills to make healthy decisions about sexual health.”
“At Diverse and Resilient, we work to achieve health equity and improve the safety and well-being of LGBTQ people and communities in Wisconsin. We see a future in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people in Wisconsin thrive, living healthy, satisfying lives in safe, supportive communities. We know that we must create inclusive and supportive environments to end violence against LGBTQ youth. We seek an end to youth incarceration and state violence. However, we recognize that the current system as it stands incarcerates youth including LGBTQ youth. Therefore, we support this statement.”
— Diverse and Resilient
“LGBTQ and transgender, nonbinary, & gender nonconforming youth—especially those who are also youth of color, youth with disabilities, and youth who are immigrants—are more likely to be targeted by police, criminalized, and incarcerated in the USA. While we work to abolish prisons & end the incarceration and criminalization of all youth, we must identify ways to reduce the lasting harms incarceration causes to the health & well-being of young people. One way to do this is to ensure that LGBTQ+ and transgender, nonbinary & gender nonconforming youth who are incarcerated have access to comprehensive, competent, and affirming healthcare and health information, as well as protection of their rights & safety.”
— Wisconsin Transgender Health Coalition
“Full LGBTQ+ liberation and self-determination will only come when our communities have access to opportunity. That means having the ability to make informed decisions about our own bodies and our own health, with the support and guidance of culturally competent health care providers. We must work to enact policies which enshrine these rights and liberties for all LGBTQ+ community members, and especially for our youth populations.”
— Equality New Mexico
“In light of our commitment to equity and social justice and to the sexual rights of all youth, Cardea is honored to join SIECUS and allies/endorsers in highlighting the need for laws and policies that guarantee the right to comprehensive, medically accurate, and affirming sexual health care for all youth under the care and custody of the state.”
—Cardea
“NCLR is committed to promoting the health and well-being of LGBTQ youth in state custody and supports the provision of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health care services.”
— NATIONAL CENTER FOR LESBIAN RIGHTS
“Marginalized young people are disproportionately likely to become survivors of sexual violence, and they also bear an elevated risk of becoming perpetrators of sexual harm. We can lower these risks by investing in the provision of sexual and reproductive health care programs and services, to equip these young people to grow into sexually healthy adults.”
“All young people should have access to comprehensive, medically accurate, culturally competent information on how to lead sexually healthy lives. Since young LGBTQ people are over-represented in confinement settings, due in part to over-policing, biases, and discrimination, LGBTQ-affirming sexual health care and services are not only important, but are necessary to LGBTQ lives. It's time to trust young people and stop withholding life-saving information and services from them.”
— National LGBTQ Task Force
“I am endorsing this message because all youth regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression have a right to access sexual health services without any burdens.”
— Rory Moore
“God is Love and Love is for Everyone.”
— Unity Fellowship of Christ Church NYC
“#EndYouthHomelessness and #SystemBarriers”
Building a health care system that allows everyone to have a fair opportunity to be healthier is a goal across Washington State. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) people share common challenges and have health care needs distinct from those who do not identify as LGBTQ. We work to align care delivery with existing evidence-based, culturally sensitive standards of care for LGBTQ people in Washington State and through that effort decrease health disparities.
— Lifelong AIDS Alliance
I am a sexuality educator who worked primarily with justice involved youth in Philadelphia for 17 years. During my time providing sexuality education, advocacy, and support, I saw the incredible need that justice-involved youth have for access to quality and comprehensive sexual health services. These youth are among the most marginalized and vulnerable in our care, especially queer and trans youth of color, and we need to do everything in our power to give them adequate access to services.
— Erica Smith
“Young people of all backgrounds deserve access to accurate, comprehensive, and age-appropriate sexual health education and care.”
“In my work I consistently provide care to—and hold space for—marginalized people, particularly young Black queer and SGL men. Many of these people have had or will have experiences with the criminal legal system solely because they are Black and/or are economically disadvantaged. It is my firm belief that services, privileges, rights—indeed, all comforts and resources—should be equitably enjoyed by all who exist within and without systems of confinement and under state control and supervision. A just society is one that provides care to its most marginalized and does so unconditionally. I endorse this statement because the only way to encourage health literacy and promote sexual agency is to equitably distribute resources and information to all people, young and old.”
— Kendall Granberry, Chicago Center for HIV Elimination
“Long overdue!”
— Ariel Ramerez
“I believe in individual rights.”
— Lionel Hillard
“SHIFT NC (Sexual Health Initiatives For Teens) is a statewide nonprofit leading North Carolina to improve adolescent and young adult sexual health. By increasing awareness, disseminating data, improving policy, supplying professional development, and providing leadership, we are empowering North Carolina’s professionals to support healthy development. The Consensus Statement is in line with our mission”
— SHIFT NC
“I am endorsing the statement because I believe adolescents and young adults have the right to be empowered to their sexual health as well as the services and programs to support it.”