Introduction
Research shows that the concerns of sexual stereotypes ends up associated with class and racial differentials in America. There is a need to consider the influences of race and the social status of families on the level of communication about sexuality between teenagers and their parents. The research by Elliot reported in the book entitled “Not My Kid: What Parents Believe about the Sex Lives of their Teenagers” cuts across different races under varying social status. Elliot reveals how different classes of individual from varying races perceive sexuality and works towards passing the underlying stereotypes to their children. Statistics shows that approximately 60% of African American teenagers share sexuality with their parents while 42% of adolescents from Latino share with their parents matters concerning sexuality. There is a high prevalence of conversation with parents and female teenager from American Africans, Hispanics about the dangers of unprotected sexual intercourse than amongst the Whites. Across the races, the level of communication between the teenagers and parents will vary as per the social status. The paper critically analyzes how race and social status influences the communication between parents and teenagers. The ideas under discussion will involve the use of the concept learned from class and Elliot’s findings from the book entitled “Not My Kid: What Parents Believe about the Sex Lives of their Teenagers.”Response and analysis It is true that race and class influences the manner in which parents talk to their children concerning sex and sexuality. African Americans from a low social status have shown a high prevalence in sharing out issues of sex and sexuality with their female teenagers than the Whites and Latinos (Elliott 2012). As seen from Eliot’s research, response from Carina who is a black female from a poor background shows her habit of frequently sharing out of the effects of unprotected sex with the daughters. She also reported of taking the daughters to Planned Parenthood. When critically analyzed, it is evident that parents from low social status share out sexuality and sex issues with teenagers in fear of the repercussions from unprotected sex. Pinder (2013) discussed that African American fears the economic effect of early pregnancy in case of case of unprotected sex. Furthermore, parents from low-status backgrounds also perceive teenagers as sexually active who can end up facing consequences of early and unprotected sex such unplanned pregnancies and contraction of sexually transmitted diseases. White American parents from an affluent background rarely talk to adolescents about sex and sexuality. Whites from high-status background perceive that sharing matters regarding sex and sexuality in depth with teenagers will “spoil” them, as they are only “babies.” For instance, Rose who is a White American mother and from an affluent background reported of sharing little with his 16 years old son. Rose considers the son as too young to know matters of sex and sexuality she only shares with him about sex as for married couple alone. Affluence whites have the stereotype of teenagers having to abstain from sex until marriage. Pinder (2013) stated that White American parents usually blame other teenagers for forcing their children into sex and sexuality. In most cases, they will view their sons and daughters as innocent. Most of the time the blame ends up subjected on the type of movies they watch and friends. The analysis shows that the reason while children from affluence family who engage in sexual controversies in America is out of little knowledge about sex and sexuality from their parents. Stereotyping leads to engagement into sexual controversies such as pornography because teenagers do not get sexual norms based on truths and reality (Elliott 2012). Youngsters end up practicing sex and sexuality out of peer pressure with little knowledge about dangers of sex and sexuality. Latinos parents also have ended up reported participation in sex and sexuality conversations with teenagers though below the weight line just as the blacks and Whites. The level at which the Latinos Americans converse with teenager in matters concerning sex and sexuality is below in blacks but slightly higher than the White Americans. Research by Pinder (2013) showed that the level as percentages in which African Americans, Latinos and White American talk with adolescents about sex and sexuality is 60%, 42 and 39% respectfully. Latinos stereotype sex and sexuality based on cultural norms in the society. Parents do not teach their sons and daughters the positive side of sex and sexuality, but stresses on the negative effects of sex. The Latino parents associate sex with promiscuity, unwanted sex, deviant, prostitution and pornography (Elliott 2012). They, therefore, inflict fear in teenagers as a way of preventing them from engaging in sex before marriage as a way of protecting them from the negative effect of sex before marriage. When critically analyzed, it is evident that Latino parents are aware that teenagers are sexually active but fail to teach them about responsible sex and sexuality habits hence reliance on stereotyping. As a result, Elliot in his book entitled Not My Kid: What Parents Believe about the Sex Lives of their Teenagers has come up with recommendations to help such parents. According to Pinder (2013), the use of information from different races and social classes offers the recommendations by Elliot find reputation for application by American parents. The increasing cases of negative effects of sex in the American higher learning institutions are out of parents’ failure to empower youngsters about sex and sexuality. It is now high time for parents to take up the responsibility to converse with teenagers on matters about sex and sexuality. Perceiving sex and sexuality discussion with teenagers as a negative action by parents from different races and social classes is the reason for the increasing cases of early pregnancies and contraction of STI in American higher learning institutions today. Elliot has devised mechanisms towards sex and sexuality competence across races and cultures (Elliott 2012). However, recommendation towards sex and sexuality conversations between the parents and adolescents offered Elliot does not show the broader implications of their applications to the cultural norms of some races and social classesConclusion conclusively, different races and social classes regard sex and sexuality differently and work towards passing the paradox to their sons and daughters. Report by Elliot showed that parents from different races and classes are aware that teenagers are sexually active but lack techniques to drive the point at home hence reliance on stereotyping. Statistically, the level of engaging in conversations with teenagers in matters regarding sex and sexuality have ended up shown highest amongst African Americans followed by Latinos while Whites parents have recorded the least percentage. Elliot has come up recommendable steps to help parents from varying racial and social classes’ backgrounds on how to engage in conversations about sex and sexuality basing on truth and reality. Elliot went beyond controversy and hype through interviewing and attending meetings and debates that involved individual across races and social status to bring out the understanding about parents role in teaching teenager about sex and sexuality.
References
Elliott, Sinikka. 2012. Not My Kid: What Parents Believe about the Sex Lives of their Teenagers? New York: New York University Press.
Pinder, Sydney 2013. Reflection of Elliot Sinikka’s study, American multicultural studies: Diversity of race, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
