Dial-A-Vice
Teen Phone Service Offers Questionable Guidance
April, 1997
by Judson S. BallentineA telephone counseling service being promoted to teens in Minnesota's schools may be considered an obscene phone call.
The Teen Age Medical Service (TAMS), a department of the Minneapolis Children's Medical Center, offers a telephone counseling service called No Hang-Ups. This service offers advice on 42 subjects including cults, drinking, peer pressure, and self esteem.
The service is advertised through posters provided free of charge to any Minnesota school that requests one. In addition, TAMS does a mass mailing every couple of years to all Minnesota middle and high schools, public and private. Wallet-sized cards are also available.
The posters that advertise the service give a phone number to call (1-800-626-7476) and a list of extensions corresponding to the 42 subjects. By dialing these extensions, callers can listen to pre-recorded messages on the various subjects.
No Hang-Ups was started in 1992, and was designed for ages 10 to 21. The Minnesota Family Council found that the service offers sound advice on many subjects like cheating and friendships. However, advice on other topics, such as homosexuality, thinking about sex, birth control, and teen pregnancy may be objectionable to parents.
The recording on "Homosexuality" (extension 0007) states, "One of the ways people vary is in their sexuality. Some people like blondes, others brunettes. Some people like men, others women. Adolescence is a time when many people start exploring their sexuality -- what they like in partners and what they don't. For some people this exploration includes sexual experiences, sexual fantasies, or falling in love with people of the same sex as themselves...."
The recording continues, "Some people believe that homosexuality is a sin, or wrong. Others just can't understand how someone could engage in sexual relations with someone of the same sex, or fall in love and be romantically involved with a person of the same sex. These people might make life difficult for someone...they suspect of being homosexual....
"People are surprised to learn that many teenagers have had homosexual experiences and that as many as 10 percent of all teenagers might actually be bisexual or gay...." The recording does not mention the studies which found that less than five percent of people ever have a homosexual experience, or the other studies that have placed the number of homosexuals in the population at one or two percent.
The recording goes on to say, "Most professionals believe that homosexuality is not a condition which one chooses, but is rather a part of who a person is...."
The message later says, "It is important to decide how and when to begin one's sex life rather than to start it by accident. In all cases, it's important to practice 'safer' sex in order to avoid sexually transmitted diseases, and particularly AIDS. Basically, to be 'safer,' avoid the exchange of bodily fluids with someone else, particularly the exchange of blood or semen. Sexual relations with condoms, or involving only masturbation, are considered to be fairly safe."
The message also says, "Having a homosexual experience -- even one which is sexually exciting and pleasurable -- does not mean that the individual is gay or lesbian...." This line -- along with the entire tone of the message -- might be construed as an encouragement to explore the homosexual lifestyle.
The recording offers the following advice: "If you have sexual concerns that are really troubling you, it may be helpful to talk to a professional counselor or therapist. It is best to talk to someone who is experienced in dealing with teenagers who are struggling with issues of homosexuality who can be positive and supportive. There are also gay hotlines in many major cities which teenagers may call for information and referrals to local resources. One national organization called Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) is particularly helpful for teenagers and their families who may be confused about possible homosexuality." The recording steers children away from confiding in their parents like this more than once.
The recording concludes, "It's the range of human differences that makes life interesting for all of us."
By dialing the No Hang-Ups number and extension 0004, one can hear a recording entitled "Thinking About Sex." Among other things, this recording says, "Move at your own pace, according to your own feelings and your own conscience.... Many people wait until they're older, or until they're married, to get sexually involved with another person. It's your choice, based on things you've learned from parents, your religion, society, your own experiences."
Another No Hang-Ups recording offers advice on birth control. At extension 0040, callers can hear a message that includes the following: "The choices you have and the decisions you make about your sexuality affect your life. Sometimes it's hard to decide what you want. Birth control is one of your choices and is part of your decision.... Using birth control means you admit to yourself that you are having sexual intercourse. You are taking responsibility for yourself. You decide which method of birth control is best for you."
The recording on birth control then describes contraceptive foam, contraceptive film, contraceptive suppositories, the sponge, the diaphragm, condoms, birth control pills, the shot, and Norplant. The recording gives graphic descriptions on how to use and apply the contraceptives, talking about inserting contraceptives into the vagina with the fingers and unrolling a condom onto the erect penis, for example.
It also gives percentage success rates for the various types of contraception. (Keep in mind that these recordings are meant for children as young as 10 years old.)
At extension 0006, "Teen Pregnancy," children can hear, "It's so important kids understand all the issues, the risks, the myths, and the truths about pregnancy because the results of pregnancy are so important: namely, the birth, or miscarriage, or abortion, or adoption of a new human being -- a baby."
The teen pregnancy advice includes a statement which says that after becoming pregnant, a teenager "faces three options now, none of which she may be ready for: to terminate the pregnancy through abortion, to have the baby and allow someone else to adopt it, or even though she's not entirely done with growing up herself, to bring the baby home...." The recording makes carrying the baby to term sound quite undesirable.
Toward the end of the recording, teens are encouraged to "contact Planned Parenthood for some more information on birth control decisin-making." The recording does not note that Planned Parenthood is the state's largest abortion provider, or that Planned Parenthood stands to benefit financially from teens who choose abortion.
The messages are followed by an encouragement to call (612) 813-6844 to set up a counseling appointment at TAMS. According to a Medical Service staff member, No Hang-Ups received 8,000 calls last year.
Reacting to No Hang-Ups, Tom Prichard, Executive Director of the Minnesota Family Council, said, "Parents should be appalled that 10-year-olds are encouraged to listen to something so explicit. When children are fed this sort of nonsense, it's no wonder they are confused and addicted to destructive behaviors. Parents should check their children's schools to make sure they aren't exposed to this material."
(Jud Ballentine is a senior at Roseville Senior High School and works part-time at the Minnesota Family Council.)
Back to the PFN Front Page