Youth Forum debates teen pregnancy, marijuana

Daniela Mohor

Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2001 | 9:29 a.m.

Young people see the issues that divide America up close. Sometimes people listen to their thoughts on those issues.

Adults were listening Tuesday, as participants of the Sun Youth Forum passionately debated two sensitive issues: teen pregnancy and the legalization of marijuana.

Although most students agreed on the need for more education about sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy, opinions diverged when it came to discussing who is responsible for talking to teens about these issues.

Some believed it is the schools' task, others considered it the job of the parents.

"You can't assume that the mother or the father is gonna do it, because they don't always do. So, the teachers have to do it," said Amy Bodnar, a senior at Centennial High School.

"You can't learn your morals and values at school," said Jenna Staheli, a junior at Silverado High School." You have to learn them at home."

A stronger collaboration between parents and educators, others said, would be the best solution.

Like many of her peers, Staheli also had an opinion on public assistance programs in place to help young parents support their children.

Giving them money, she said, does little to help.

"You can't live on welfare forever," she said, referring to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. "If you're not able to take care of your baby, there are other solutions, such as adoption."

Brian Steen, a junior at Cheyenne High School, disagreed.

"It's not a reward for getting pregnant. It's money to educate your child," he said. "That money doesn't come that easy."

To be eligible for TANF money, teens with children must comply with a series of requirements, such as living in an adult-supervised setting and being in a school or training program.

If it weren't for the federal aid she received, Steen said, his mother wouldn't be where she is today. A single mother, she works at the Community College of Southern Nevada and is able to support her four children.

"We live in a four-bedroom house. We're well taken care of," Steen said.

Another much debated topic during the forum involved the legalization of marijuana.

Many students were opposed to allowing its use, regardless of whether it is used for medical purposes. Other medicines less harmful to the human body can be used without running the risk of expanding the general use of marijuana, they said.

"I don't think it should be approved, because so many people get medicine prescribed but go selling it around to people to whom it may cause harm," said Heather Gonzalez, a student at Centennial High School.

Others, however, argued that many people are addicted to legal drugs, such as painkillers.

"I don't think someone should be prevented from taking a drug because some people may steal it from them," said Palo Verde High School junior Clare Fransioli."The illegal use is going to go on anyway."

That's precisely why marijuana should be legalized, Daniel Mangiapani, a senior at Bishop Gorman High School, said. Mangiapani argued that illegality only resulted in increased crime rates. Making the drug legal, he explained, would help reduce smuggling and drug-related homicides.

Sasha Perry, a senior at Vo-Tech, said that legalization had brought results in other countries, such as the Netherlands, where marijuana was legalized years ago. She doubted, however, that such policies would work in the United States.

"In Europe where they have legalized marijuana, they have the least amount of drug addicts," she said. "But in the U.S. we never do things in moderation ... If marijuana was legalized, think about how bad it could be for people here."