of reproducti e organs out of Ping-Pongrnballs, paper cups, straw, yarn, and cellophanernbags. Given Elders’ endorsementrnbv the Sex Information EducationrnCouncil of the United States (SIECUS),rnone might further divine her educationalrn”health” plan by citing the council’srn”messages” for five- to eight-year-olds:rn”Boys and men have a penis, scrotum,rnand testicles. Girls and women have arn’ulva, clitoris, vagina, uterus, and o’aries.rnBoth gids and boys have bodv parts thatrnfeel good when touched. . . . Sexual intercoursernoccurs when a man and arnwoman place the penis inside the vagina.rn. . . Some men and women are homosexual,rnwhich means they will be attractedrnto and fall in love wuth someonernof the same gender.”rnGranting that teaching the phvsiolog)rnof sex is integral at some point to responsiblernsex ed, there is staunch oppositionrn—from both parents and medicalrnprofessionals—to instruction of this kindrnat such an early age. Some of the oppositionrncenters on violation of the “latenc’rnperiod,” when, according to psychiatristrnWilliam McGrath, healthy youngrnchildren are “not interested in sex” andrn”premature interest… in sex is unnaturalrnand will arrest or distract the developmentrnof personality.” Parents chargerninfringement of their rights and familialrnprivacy bv Big Brother (and Big Sister)rnwhose pedagogy contradicts their own.rnThese are powerful social stirrings, withrnthe potential for litigation against publicrnschools on the basis of perceived parentalrnrights and freedom of religious expressionrn(i.e., parental teaching of religiouslyrnbased sexual morality).rnThere is, moreover, Elders’ looserntongue on the matter of giving contraceptivesrnto teenagers. When namedrnpublic health director in Arkansas, shernwas asked if she would recommend distributingrncondoms in public schools.rn”Well,” she responded, “we’re not goingrnto put them on lunch trays, but ves.”rnShe admonished girls to carry condomsrnin their purses on dates and concluded:rn”We taught them what to do in the frontrnseat [of a car]…. Now it’s time to teachrnthem what to do in the back seat.”rnElders’ flippancy highlights her kneejerkrn”value neutrality,” now similarly ingrainedrnin the public school establishment’srntreatment of sexuality, hi steprnwith this conventional amorality, shernmakes no pretense of upholding thernmoral standard that voungsters shouldrnsimply not have sexual intercourse, and.rnby adopting as her chief concern “safe”rnsex, she implicitly condones it. Also, herrnreductionist (narrowly contraceptiongoverned)rnmodel of sex cd, by discouragingrninternalized beliefs and values, unnaturallyrndisjoins sex in students’ mindsrnfrom that which gi’es it meaning: mystery,rnpassion, lo’e, personality, selfworth,rnintegrity, family, community, andrntranscendent ends.rnThe unwillingness of sexual ideologuesrnsuch as Elders to hold up traditionalrnnorms of right and wrong is insidious.rnConcerned physicians, such asrnMildred Jefferson, warn that condomrndistribution in the public schools is failingrnto decrease rates of teen pregnancyrnand sex-related diseases, includingrnAIDS, and appears even to increasernthem. Thev point out that, even whenrnteenagers are educated about and havernaccess to condoms, they most often failrnto use them or do so ineffectively. Inrnplace of contraception-centered sex edrnthey hold up abstinence-based modelsrnwhose success they claim can be demonstrated.rnThe failure of condom-basedrnsex ed, notably on Elders’ own turf, is arncase in point: during her tenure asrnArkansas’ public health director, thernstate went from having the fourth highestrnteen birthrate in the country to thernsecond highest; the rate of sexuallv transmittedrndiseases among teens rose strikingh.rnReprehensibly, when on Elders’rnwatch a large batch of defective condomsrnwas distributed to schoolchildren,rnshe deliberately kept this danger secret.rnShe has refused to acknowledge wrongdoingrnand has neer sought out thosernwho may have become pregnant or infected.rnThe confirmation of so unht arnSurgeon General is all the more abhorrentrnin light of Elders’ widely alleged financialrnimproprieties and managerial incompetence.rnThis controversv is an unambiguousrnsign of the gaping fault line in Americanrnculture. It is emblematic of the seethingrnrift between, on the one hand, largelvrnmiddle-class traditionalists, who arernfrustrated in the extreme by the highhandedrnintrusion into their economicrnand social affairs of the dominant statistrnelite, and, on the other hand, that samernelite, whose purpose is to substitute itsrnUtopian will for that of the people and tornaggrandize itself. This is why Elders’rnsubstance and style matter, for they graternat the heart of historic American beliefsrnand sensibilities. Her “in your own face”rnbra’ado epitomizes the left-liberal, bureaucraticrnarrogance now stoking thernAmerican blood feud; it will play its drollrnpart in the decisive cultural battle torncome.rn—Candace de RussyrnOBITER DICTA: In the past, it hasrnbeen difhcult to find Chronicles in itsrnhometown. Now, we are happy to announce,rnRockford’s three Book Worldrnshops (at Colonial Village, North TownernMall, and Stewart Square) as well as MediarnPlay have agreed to carry the magazine.rnWhen you go shopping this holidayrnseason, please keep in mind thosernstores that have not turned Chroniclesrndown.rnAlso, this Christmas, rememberrnChronicles’ Real American Calendarrnwhen brainstorming for gift ideas. Availablernsoon, the calendar sells for $15. Tornorder by credit card, call 800-583-0680,rnor send a cheek or money order tornChronicles Calendar, 934 N. MainrnStreet, Rockford,IL 61103.rnThose who enjoyed our March numberrn(“Art in the 90’s: Visions and Values”)rnand are interested in promotingrnbeauty and humanistic values in the finernarts will be happy to hear that AlexandrarnYork’s foundation, American Renaissancernfor the Twenty-First Centuryrn(ART), has planned a number of newrnprojects. These include: organizing publiernexhibitions, providing educationalrnprograms, establishing an ART center inrnNew York as well as local chapters, andrnpublishing a newsletter, ART Ideas. Thernfoundation is currently accepting submissionsrnfor its exhibitions and newsletterrnin the following categories: painting,rnsculpture, and drawing; poetry; shortrnstorv, fiction, and drama for stage orrnscreen; music and/or song; and articles orrnessays on the arts or on our culture generally.rnWhile ART cannot yet pay forrnsubmissions, it does hope to offer grantsrnto deserving artists and writers in the future.rnPlease send slides, photos, cassettes,rnscores, lyrics, or writings plus biographicalrninformation to Alexandra Yorkrnat American Renaissance for the Twenty-rnFirst Century, Inc., F.D.R. Station, P.O.rnBox 8379, New York, NY 10150-1919.rn6/CHRONICLESrnrnrn