In 1967, the cover of Time Magazine posed the question, "Is God Dead?" And from that era forward, a sexual revolution swept the nation and it continues to this day. "Make love, not war" was the catchphrase for the younger generation, and the public schools picked up that campaign and ran with it. And I saw this happening up close and personal because as part of my training in child development at the University of Southern California, I taught sixth, seventh and eighth graders, and that was followed by a year as a high school counselor. And I saw what was happening, and I decried what was taking place. And in my first book for parents called The New Dare to Discipline, I talked about this to parents, and I tried to warn them about where this seismic shift was leading.
Every year since then it seems sexual educators have become ever more radical and perverse in their teachings. Until we come to this present day when even the youngest and most vulnerable children are being propagandized and warped in the classrooms. Transgender education begins in the primary grades. And what bothers me most is that parents seem oblivious to it. It's taking place in every state in the nation, some worse than others, California leading the way of course. But any way you slice it, it is a tragedy that sex education program has led to many of the painful things that are occurring with young people today. And of course, many of them are grown.
The primary organization seeking to stem the tide of the sexual revolution is called the Medical Institute for Sexual Health. It is a medical organization, but it is fighting essentially for an understanding of what immorality does. It was founded in 1992 by my good friend, Dr. Joe McElhaney, who is a retired OB/GYN. He was scheduled to be with us today, but he has to cancel because of an illness, and we're praying for him.
But with us is his colleague Lori Kuykendall. She is the mother of four. Most of them are nearly grown now, right? You still have a teenager. And she's the current president as of three weeks ago, and the CEO of the Medical Institute for Sexual Health, which I just referred to. And she's here to talk about what is being called the new sexual revolution. And that's really going back to a time prior to what happened in the '60s that I talked about it. Has anybody described that to you, what that era was like?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, Dr. Dobson, I was born in 1972, so did not experience it myself, but certainly have seen the fallout of it since that time, for all of the years of my living and then growing up into a field of health education and learning more about it, historically. Parents and grandparents, of course saw it and experienced it in its different forms and families of that time.
Dr. Dobson: Has anybody linked for you what's happening right now that's a tragedy for what's occurring to this generation of young people, and where it started? Because it came out of nowhere in the late '60s.
Lori Kuykendall: Well, I think there were a couple of key cultural shifts that came together really right in a perfect storm. So there was cultural shifts, religious shifts, family shifting, the time of in between post-war era and baby boomers and feminism and secular humanism. There were a whole lot of issues swirling that I think made the perfect storm to launch out a whole set of new values and behaviors and attitudes around these topics.
Dr. Dobson: For those that don't know, tell people what the sexual revolution was all about. What did it stand for?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, it stood for freedom. And we can now cast off all restraint and sow our wild oats off into the world that has been made for us. So often the teenagers, it happened on college campuses, it began there, and then those theories of how to make yourself and define your own truth and how that played out in terms of behavior choices. So the wild living of sex and drugs and rock and roll and all of that rebellion that happened is fascinating to study from a generational perspective, also, in kind of what was, again, as I said, the perfect storm.
Dr. Dobson: Having lived through it, one of the things that bothered me was that the church was largely silent about it. It just was intimidated, and there were many, many exceptions to that. But for the part, the abortion movement that came out of that, it became legal just four or five years later, was not reacted to the way you would have expected it to do. So it had a free reign and people were saying, "Hey, this is neat. I can have all this fun and not have any consequences." And we actually convinced people that they could sleep around and not pay a price for it. And that has led to the Medical Institute for Sexual Health.
Lori Kuykendall: Right. I think that sex without consequences and sex without commitment have created all kinds of problems. So in the '40s, the divorce rate was one in six. And now we look at it nearly one in every two marriages ending in divorce. So clearly a shift in that timeframe around values and sex and marriage. Look at sexually transmitted diseases in the '40s, really up until the sexual revolution of the '70s, there were only two. They were called venereal diseases, which sounded bad, syphilis and gonorrhea, that were easily treated with antibiotics. Today, there are over 30 significant sexually transmitted diseases. So we see the fallout, we see the dramatic cultural shift, and we often talk about shifts in media and technology that have only added to all of these changes and as I say, the fallout of the sexual revolution time.
Dr. Dobson: How rampant are sexually transmitted diseases among the young people today?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, the Centers for Disease Control calls it an epidemic. The numbers continue to increase. So that's across the bacterial infections, the viral infections. And it's interesting, Dr. Dobson, because actually statistics on abortion, on pregnancy, on teen sexual activity have been going down for the last 20 years. People don't always know that, but it's easy to track and see where sexual activity and teen pregnancy and teen abortion have continued to go down. Now, people are debating about why, but STDs have not gone down. They have continued to climb. And things like neonatal syphilis, more babies, increased over a 100% in the last few years. So we're seeing these increases in STDs. And the way I try to help young people understand it is simply that sex today is more dangerous than it was. Or there are these further extremes, more at risk groups, that are having lots of problems, and the STD problem is not getting better.
Dr. Dobson: Describe the diseases, name the diseases that are most prevalent.
Lori Kuykendall: Well HPV, the human papilloma virus, is the most common STD among teenagers. This is the one that has posed an issue for a long time. It can lead to genital warts and cancer. We help young people understand that yes, you can get cancer from having sex, but it's been a trouble for those would push safe sex because it is a skin disease. It is spread through skin to skin, body to body contact. And quite honestly, the condoms they offer do not cover all of the skin needed to protect. So even the Centers for Disease Control will acknowledge, they may protect against this HPV.
And right up there with it are the bacterial infections of chlamydia and gonorrhea. Getting harder to treat now. There's now a antibiotic resistance, gonorrhea specifically, is getting harder to treat. We've almost run out of options to treat these bacteria that are so prevalent also.
Dr. Dobson: Historically, again, having watched Bill Clinton's escapade in the Oval Office, and I don't want to be too graphic here, but what he did with the young lady was said not to be sex because you couldn't get pregnant from it. And yet now the diseases that were passed along orally include cancer and catastrophic illnesses.
Lori Kuykendall: Absolutely. I think we talk now broader. It's not just sex, it's sexual activity, it's sexual contact. And that does take different forms. And we do have to sometimes have graphic conversations, clear concrete conversations, to help young people. They misunderstand, "well, it's not sex." Well, if there is exposure there you are at risk, and it's not just a physical problem with diseases or perhaps pregnancy risk. Dr. Dobson, we have to help young people understand the mental and emotional health as well. And we see the mental health crises of the day and climbing depression and suicide and all of that has to be related to sexual decisions also.
Dr. Dobson: Yeah. So the high school and college students of that day who were told that they were liberated by the sexual revolution were told a lie, and many of them have suffered from it. Some of those diseases are incurable, the HPV and some of the others, you can treat it, but you cannot cure it. And therefore you get it and you've got it.
Lori Kuykendall: That's right. HPV, of course, HSV is herpes. And then HIV. HPV, HSV and HIV are the viruses that can't be cured. And it is tragic to hear those stories, again, not just from a physical perspective, from an emotional perspective. Have met couples where one of them brought a herpes infection into the marriage, and they are careful, they abstain, they do whatever is needed during that time of crisis. And yet the emotional and relational fallout of that is perhaps even worse than the pain of the infection itself.
Dr. Dobson: When you talk like this, I assume that you go on high school campuses and you talk to parent groups and others. What do people say about you? What kind of flack do you get for telling the truth?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, Dr. Dobson, I think it's going to be a mixed response. I think we've got a whole host of people that know this is true, and are glad to have someone standing up to make it make sense from a science perspective and a health perspective. And yet there are those that oppose our work, that would rather advance a safe sex message, a normalizing sexual behavior. A lot of those that oppose us have so devalued the act of sex, made it just about physical, about bodies, and taken away the true wholeness and intimacy of its original intent.
So those that oppose us often have bought into an ideology that says sex is just about bodies and it's a normal, healthy part of life. And then not having sex would be a religious or moral choice. And while it may be, it absolutely is a health decision also. So, we always try to find the common ground of health and science, because it's hard to debate those and they're not often as personal.
Dr. Dobson: Now, the new sexual revolution is the title that's given to the work that you're trying to do. You call it the coalition for the new sexual revolution. Is that the title?
Lori Kuykendall: That is it. It is an informal title. It is what we call ourselves, a work that Dr. McElhaney started three years ago now. At this point in his career, he wanted to bring together his friends. Now at the time he was 83 years old, having worked faithfully in the field. As you mentioned, he was an OB/GYN and then retired to do this work in prevention, education, and research. And he was feeling like we've done all this work. We've made a lot of progress. And yet there is something missing to truly change the culture.
So we sought to bring together like-minded leaders across the nation, who said, "We've got to figure out what can we achieve together that would really get at the base, the root issue, of many of these ills of society that the sexual revolution brought."
Dr. Dobson: Yeah. And you have now about 150 professionals that are participating in this cause.
Lori Kuykendall: Yes, we do. We are growing. We know we don't have everybody at the table yet. In some ways we are an underground operation, though not so underground, as I sit on your program today. But we want people to know there is a coming together that is desperately needed to figure out what we can uniquely accomplish. We each have our areas. So some of us are working on abortion. Some are working on pornography. Some human trafficking. But if you think about it, all of those issues come down to a root of sex outside its intended context of healthy marriage.
Dr. Dobson: Yeah. It turns out the Bible was right about that, doesn't it?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, He knows what He's talking about, yes.
Dr. Dobson: He prohibited certain behavior because not only was it immoral in God's standard, and He's the one that establishes what is moral and is immoral, but is also not in the best interest of the human beings. And if we had followed His rules and perspectives, which were jettisoned in the '60s, we wouldn't have faced many of the trials. And I think one of them, the disintegration of marriage, or at least the weakening of the marital bond. I was invited by Dr. McElhaney to be one of those early participants. And my plate is full here doing daily radio and all the other things we're trying to get accomplished, so I wasn't able to do it, but I would love to be one of those 150 that are there. You come together in Washington, don't you, for meetings? What happens at those meetings?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, we are committed to be a working group. So a strategy and working group. Dr. Dobson, you've probably been a part of groups that just sort of sit around and talk to each other. We don't want to do that. We want to actually do something. So we have a facilitator. He's an amazing person who's worked with some national ministries, really a strategy planner who gets us working, and we have goals. And we've got some significant projects that we've been able to do collaboratively. And one of those is a new national standards for sex education for schools. We have a about to be published, new set of national standards for sex education that this group has brought forth.
Dr. Dobson: And now Lori, you guys are trying to oppose, put it in other words, this is a mountain a mile high that you're trying to climb, because almost the whole culture is going the other direction. How in the world are you going to turn that around?
Lori Kuykendall: I love the question. Thank you so much, because I love to answer it this way, that it takes only a small light to drown out the darkness. A whole room that is pitch black is made brighter by a small candle. And I think we've got a lot of little candles who need brought together to be even a brighter light to break through the darkness and breakthrough the culture. I think that things are getting so bad that people are looking for that light, that we might be able to show a better way back, a better way. Maybe this didn't get us where we wanted it to be. Maybe our families aren't better off, maybe we're-
Dr. Dobson: We are losing ground in the public schools, though, aren't we? I mean, it is breathtaking what's being taught there.
Lori Kuykendall: It is. Absolutely. And I think we've got to keep parents engaged, as you are. Parents have to be working for their role as the primary sex educator of their children. It starts at home. And then what can we do in schools? The problem is it's not just the schools. It is a cultural push. So even if we protect schools, as we absolutely need to, the culture itself across media and messages, far beyond the walls of the school, are those lies and misconceptions and dangerous ideas that are being promulgated through the culture. So we've got to break through that. And I think the way to do it, Dr. Dobson is with light, and with truth, and hope, that can be reborn from a small, small little candle to light another and light another and what could we do together?
The other side is out ahead of us, and they're loud. And we've got to bring our voices together and begin to let the world know this isn't the way things have to be.
Dr. Dobson: They have Hollywood, they have the internet, they have the schools. In many ways they have the Congress. Planned Parenthood's still given $500 million a year. It's just, this is one of Satan's primary goals is to warp and destroy and kill. And that's what's happening. I appreciate so much what you're doing and the fact that you're here to talk about it because parents do not know this. They're not aware. Certainly the young people don't know. They think they can sleep around and do it with impunity, but they can't. It's a terribly dangerous thing to do. We've got the whole country sequestered, staying home, trying to avoid a virus. Here's one that is rampant throughout the young, wherever young people are. And it just breaks my heart really.
Lori Kuykendall: I think we're also learning, if I may say, that families are our home base, that we've all retreated home, and homes are either are strengthening in this time, or perhaps getting more broken and more in critical need of support. I think that's part of our vision here is to think longer term in really rebuilding families from the ground up. And that's going to take those early education and prevention messages to rebuild families, which starts with the sanctity of marriage, and the sanctity of sexuality, and the gift in marriage that we hope can be begun.
And there's some interesting things happening with generations. So if you track generations, there's hero generations and silent generations. And if you track this cycle of generations, it's actually Gen Z coming up and perhaps maybe even their children could be a next rebel generation. And my thought, Dr. Dobson, is they might be able to push us back. They kind of parallel the rebellious generation of the '60s and '70s we've spoken of. And yet at the same time, it might be that rebellion means, "This is not where we want to go anymore. Let's get back. Let's go forward to a better place." Rebel, push back against the culture of the day, is one thing I hope, if that makes sense.
Dr. Dobson: Well, it does make sense. In fact, it's a powerful message. How are you funded? How is this effort being supported?
Lori Kuykendall: Well, we rely on the generous gift of donors and investors who see the partnership of supporting this level of work. Dr. McElhaney has dedicated himself to that work of continuing to get the funding. Of course, there are grants and foundations and opportunities that come along. We have resources that bring in some of our income, our trainings and opportunities, but at some level it's like most ministries. We are dependent on those who support our effort, our vision, and partner with us to see that grow out into the world.
Dr. Dobson: Well, this is a cause, a purpose, an organization that I've been supportive of ever since it was started in 1992. And I want to do so today and I would really like to ask our listeners to be supportive of you. We are obviously listener supported as well, but I say this is a cause that I would like to see others get behind, because it's hard to raise money for this, isn't it?
Lori Kuykendall: It is. And I of course appreciate your support. And I also would want people to know, no one else that we can see is trying to do this the way we are, in terms of reaching out both within the walls of the church and out into the broader culture at large, with the values that we uphold, the conservative values, and the science, led by the science. That so speaks to the goodness of the good plan as you referenced earlier. And I think that's a unique place we're in, and I hope others will catch that vision and see the investment of reaching the culture, reaching the next generation, of really rebuilding families in a strategic way,
Dr. Dobson: On a day-by-day basis, how does it function? How are you getting to kids? How are you getting to parents? Do you hold conferences? Do you come to schools to talk to the kids and to their parents? What are you doing?
Lori Kuykendall: We have a three-part strategy. So that is medically accurate research. That is whole health education. And then my favorite part is influencer focused leadership. So we are fueling the abstinence programs in the schools. We're providing their science. We're training parents. We're providing policymakers the research and education that they need. Our partners in the coalition reach over a million students every year with sexual risk avoidance education. So we are about providing the science and research that fuels these influencers. So while I'm not in the high schools as much, those we give the science and research to absolutely are.
Dr. Dobson: And the schools are asking for this information?
Lori Kuykendall: Yes, yes, they are.
Dr. Dobson: You're in Texas, aren't you?
Lori Kuykendall: That is true. There's a lot of terrible stuff out there, and there's a lot of good hope as well. We've got a lot of good groups on the ground, sexual risk avoidance partners on the ground.
Dr. Dobson: Well, we're out of time, Lori. We're talking to Lori Kuykendall, and she is the chairman and CEO of the Medical Institute for Sexual health. She's flown here at some risk, obviously, all of us who get on a plane today think about whether or not we're doing the right thing. You had the courage to come here today. As long as you've made this journey and you're here, I would like to do one more day to talk about the battle that's going on in Texas, right at the point of this discussion. And if you'll be with us, I want you to just stay right where you are, and we'll do tomorrow's program right here.
Lori Kuykendall: That would be wonderful. Thank you so much, Dr. Dobson.
Roger Marsh: Well, be sure to catch the second half of this important discussion tomorrow, right here on Family Talk. In the meantime, go to drjamesdobson.org for more information about the Medical Institute for Sexual Health. On the broadcast you can also learn more about the new sexual revolution initiative talked about today. Find all of this by visiting drjamesdobson.org, and then click onto the broadcast button. With that, I'm Roger Marsh, inviting you to be sure to listen in again next time for another edition of Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk.
Announcer: This has been a presentation of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute.