Susquehanna Health Fair: Lisa, Southeast PA

So far in this internship, the most interesting people I have met were from tabling at the Susquehanna Health Fair on the campus of Temple University. In my experiences canvassing and phone banking, many women were incredibly pressed for time. While they politely answered questions and produced emails, these women always seemed to be in a rush to get back to their lives. At the health fair, however, life seemed to move along at a slower pace. Although most of the people who stopped by the table were uneducated about comprehensive sex ed and contraception, many were curious and took the time to stop and ask thorough questions. One woman grilled me about both of the bills, and another wanted to know why comprehensive sex ed is such a pressing issue. Most of the people at the health fair seemed to be impartial about sex ed, never before realizing its importance in their lives or in their communities. Despite this neutrality, few were apathetic. Upon hearing about the statistics of comprehensive versus abstinence only sex ed, many of them began to recall shortcomings of their own sex education and eagerly signed the petition. While there were few who came to the table already passionate about sex ed, it was incredibly interesting to witness people’s realizations about the importance of it.