It’s almost October (where did 2018 go, anyway?), and that means three things:
- Optimizing the trick-or-treat route for maximum candy acquisition
- Those sticky decorative webs that take ‘til April to finally extricate from the bushes;
- #LetsTalkMonth, dedicated to facilitating frank talk between youth and the adults they trust about sexual health.
This era of #MeToo, daily news about sexual abuse scandals, and open discrimination against gay and transgender communities are scarier than anything we’re likely to see on Halloween. Given the climate we’re in, not only are frank conversations about sex important, but sex education is more crucial than ever. In fact, it’s so crucial that we’re broadening #LetsTalkMonth beyond a platform to raise awareness, to a rallying cry in support of medically-accurate, comprehensive, and inclusive sexual education in schools.
Here’s what we’re doing at BACHE during the month of October to make this position clear:
- We’re launching a campaign in which thousands of parents, educators, administrators, social workers, students, and advocates in our state, around our country, and even around our globe, are posting daily awareness messages, all under the same unifying theme of “hope.” The idea is to use our voices, and our technology,to convey our values of respect, tolerance, and honesty, showcase the strength of our numbers, and fortify our position, especially in the face of attacks on our health programs. Please learn more about what we’re doing, and join us.
Here’s the campaign, and your call to action!
What we’re doing:
- Spreading the word: We’re working across our state and beyond, reaching out to hundreds of school districts and thousands of parents, educators, administrators, social workers, students, and advocates to join the campaign. We will have representation from San Francisco, Orange County, the Peninsula, the East Bay, and more.
- Instilling hope: We came up with the theme – “hope” – for this year. All of our communications for the month will be designated by the dual hashtags, #LetsTalkMonth and #MyHope. Our key message is: When it comes to sexual health, our hope is for our kids to grow up happy, healthy, and thriving.
- Building momentum: Most importantly, we created a “campaign-in-a-box,” a set of pre-packaged, ready-to-go posts for the whole month. The package contains easy-to-follow instructions, 31 posts, and several optional campaign banners.
What can you do? Join us!
- Reach out to BACHE directly to let us know you’ll be participating.
- Watch our short training video.
- Download the pre-packaged campaign-in-a-box. It takes 10-30 minutes to plug it into your Facebook page or other media sites social page or group (you can even run it on your individual page, or simply follow one of us, such as Palo Alto Parents for Sex Ed (@PAParents4SE) on Facebook, and easily share our daily posts).
So before you start getting ready for the ghosts and goblins, take a moment to join our campaign in support of open, honest, and affirming education – at home and at school!
