Bill Taverner, who has advocated for sexuality education at U.S. congressional briefings, is the executive director of Planned Parenthood’s Center for Sex Education located in New Jersey. The Center provides training materials nationally and hosts the largest conference for sex educators in the U.S.
In 2015, he said, “[We have] in our society, an assumption of asexuality of people with intellectual disabilities. It’s a myth that’s perpetuated, and really we are all sexual beings from birth until death.”
Taverner did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“The national policy of abstinence-only is a $1.5 billion failure, and our teen girls are paying the price,” said Richards.
Wait, How can we be sexual beings from birth if our sex/gender has to be assigned?
He is right in one way. Children even toddlers understand that they have a distinct sex. They know if they are boys or girls (parents reinforce this). Children even know pretty early it is certain body parts that determine this difference.
That does not mean (as he is probably implying) that children are sexual beings as in ready to understand sex and be taught all about it. Introducing children to more complex sexual concepts is a grooming technique.