Bristol Palin’s New Abstinence-Only Message

Teen mom Bristol Palin is back in the spotlight, promoting abstinence as an ambassador for The Candie’s Foundation. She recently spoke to teens at a town hall meeting and talked about how becoming a teen mom has changed her life. See what she had to say:

We think it’s great that Bristol is speaking publicly about her experience as a teen mom. But is her message confusing? In an interview on Wednesday with Good Morning America, Bristol said “I just want to go out there and promote abstinence and say this is the safest choice.” Yet she told Fox News earlier this year that abstinence is “not realistic at all.”

It’s absolutely true that abstinence is the only 100-percent effective way to prevent both pregnancy and STDs. And Bristol’s suggestion that teens wait as long as they can to have sex is great advice. But with teen birth rates on the rise and young people at a higher risk for STDs, is it irresponsible to tell teens “just say no,” while leaving out important info on condoms and other forms of birth control?

Maybe teens can learn a lesson from Levi Johnston, the father of Bristol’s baby. Here’s what he said in response to Bristol’s abstinence-only campaign: