Right now, the State of Mississippi is in a dangerous situation. Children are not learning proper sex education, and there have been studies that show that there are correlations between unsafe sex and teenage pregnancy, HIV infection, and now Zika virus.  Let us go over some fast facts.

• In 2011, the capital of our state had the fourth highest rate of HIV infection in the nation.(1)
• In 2012, Mississippi was ranked 2nd out of 51 in pregnancies to females aged 15-19.(2)
• Zika virus causes birth defects in babies when mothers become infected, and Zika can be spread via sexual transmission. (3)

Yesterday, February 2nd, 2016, you stated that college educated Mississippians need to stay in the state to build their careers and “grow where you planted.”  Right now, you can start by addressing the educational concerns of Mississippians today.  Most of these statistics were taken during your administration as governor, and while you may say that the rates are down, it still does not address our concern of what our children will learn in schools.  We need proper reproductive health care, and the benefits are too good to miss.

1. http://www.hrc.org/blog/jackson-mississippi-has-4th-highest-rate-of-hiv-infection-in-the-nation
2. http://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/adolescent-health-topics/reproductive-health/states/ms.html
3. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/02/03/zika-q-and-a/79751476/