Oh, where to start with this issue? Georgia outlaws sodomy, which it defines as any oral or anal sex — with no exception even for married people! Its own superior court ruled that part of the law was unconstitutional, yet it remains on the books. Why, oh why, does the state care? And the state government is made up of human beings. Have these poor repressed people never had good oral sex?
But Georgia's worst offense is its laws for teen sex and its prosecution of teenagers. Genarlow Wilson (age 17) served almost three years in prison for having consenting oral sex with a teenage girl (age 15). He was originally sentenced to 10 years! But a court ruled that his punishment was cruel and unusual. No shit! What happened to this young man is tragic!
I can't believe we allow young people to be treated this way. Especially when you consider that in many states, people can marry at the age of 15 or 16 (with parental consent). In Georgia, if a 16-year-old girl is pregnant, she can marry without parental consent. So in Georgia, if you're a teenager who has already had unprotected sex and created a life (that you may not be able to take of), it's okay to marry and have more sex and more babies. Yet as a teenager, if you have oral sex, which can't result in a pregnancy, you can be sent to prison. As I said, what the hell is wrong with Georgia?
As a country, and a culture, we need to let go of the idea that sex is for married people only and/or procreation only. We need to stop focusing on the "morality" of teenage sex (ie, abstinence-only sex education) and spend more time and money educating teenagers about the potential consequences and how to protect themselves.
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