PUBLIC HEALTH & EDUCATION | Reuters Examines Teen Celebrity Abstinence Pledges
[Sept. 16, 2008]

Reuters on Friday reported on the impact of teen celebrities wearing rings signifying a pledge to remain abstinent until they are married. The rings were the subject of a comment made by Russell Brand, host of this year's MTV Video Music Awards, about the pop group the Jonas Brothers, who are among tens of thousands of teens who wear purity rings as a sign of their promise to remain virgins until marriage. Brand's jibe at the Jonas Brothers elicited a response from "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks, who also wears a so-called "purity ring," according to Reuters.

The rings were started by Christian groups in the 1990s and are embossed with phrases such as "True Love Waits" and "One Life One Love." Evangelical pastor Denny Pattyn -- founder of the Silver Ring Thing, which encourages abstinence pledges among adolescents ages 12 to 18 -- said celebrities can both help and hurt his group's goal of promoting premarital abstinence. Pattyn said that the Jonas Brothers, Sparks and some other celebrities are "doing a great job so far," but added that "when a celebrity has maybe put the ring on without the right education and inspiration and then they go out and do something crazy, it's a reflection on us."

Michael Reese, director of the Center for Sexual Health Promotion at Indiana University, said although it is "probably a nice thing" that some celebrities are "trying to be role models and model healthy behaviors," the abstinence pledges "leave people completely unprepared, once they make the decision to become sexually active, and what happens is that we have a society that is sexually illiterate" (Serjeant, Reuters, 9/15).

Opinion Piece

Brand's "mocking" of an abstinence pledge "reveals a fundamental weakness in making it work: Society at-large derides, rather than supports," abstinence "as the best choice," Orlando Sentinel columnist Darryl Owens writes in an opinion piece.

According to Owens, both abstinence and contraception are not "foolproof" ways of preventing teen pregnancy. The "problem with preaching abstinence is that it can't be sold in a vacuum," Owens writes, adding, "It has to be a multilayered approach, starting with active parents. It is dubious that educating teens about contraception whispers, 'Sow these wild oats.' On the other hand, parents who do not promote virginity as a viable, enviable choice speak volumes" (Owens, Orlando Sentinel, 9/15).





The information contained in this publication reflects media coverage of women’s health issues and does not necessarily reflect the views of the National Partnership for Women & Families.

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