| Laura's Story |
 As a high school senior, Laura Coria, along with three fellow young women, wrote a powerful film -Toothpaste- to educate their peers about contraception, self-esteem, and the realities of teenage sex. The script won the “What’s the REAL Deal?” contest sponsored by Scenarios USA. Laura has screened the film and spoken publicly nationwide about sex education. Choice USA: How did you get involved in the movement for reproductive choice and social justice? Laura: The taproot of my involvement and concern for reproductive health was made possible due to our (my cowriters and I) film Toothpaste. As Toothpaste began to gain controversy and discussion, I began to research and get training on sexual health to acquire armor in efforts of depleting misconceptions of our film. In addition, if it were not for the small group who protested against our film, we would not have had the opportunities to screen our film in a school board meeting and then attend a town hall meeting that was unsuccessfully trying to plot against the film. Scenarios USA cannot go without mentioning since they have helped us in our process and progress as activists of reproductive health. Choice USA: There are a lot of misconceptions about what choice means. How do you define it? Laura: Choice to me is having options. In this case, it is important for everyone to have a comprehensive understanding of their options/choices they have in order to be able to make healthy and knowledgeable decisions. Choice USA: What do you think is the most important political issue facing young people? Laura: The pressures of sex and relationships are an extremely important issue young people have to face. These pressures can result in consequential outcomes, which explains why I think that it is ultimately important for youth to receive a comprehensive education to make them aware of all the possible options/choices they have. Choice USA: As a young leader yourself, what do you think the movement needs most right now? Laura: It would be a great help to draw more attention to this issue and get the most support possible. Speaking in all events we are invited to speak at is of great help because not only do we continue to gain experience with public speaking, but we also gain more support to our cause. Although, we still need to gain more knowledge on this issue in preparation for future presentations that we organize for the community. This way we have the armor to withstand any opposition, since we will not just be speaking to people who agree with us, as we usually do in the events we are invited to. Choice USA: Do you have any advice for young leaders in this movement? Laura: Patience is important to have in this movement. On a personal note, although I have participated in a number of trainings pertaining to reproductive health, I feel I still need much more training and experience to be able to have that confidence to combat opposition with ease and speak about this issue without any doubts or insecurity. For me it is important to have patience and know that my continuance in this movement will gain me more knowledge and experience that will allow me to have a great impact and to be influential on the future implementation of comprehensive sex education in schools. Choice USA: Are you working on other projects, campaigns, activities, or events for which we should be watching? Laura: Currently, I am working in partnership with the League of United Latin American Citizens, which has made it possible to form the Rio Grande Valley Youth League of United Latin American Citizens. We established this Youth chapter in our community so that students can have a “club” where they can voice their opinions, make it an issue, and work to achieve a proposed goal. Our first issue in which we are aiming to tackle is concerning the sex education in schools. Aside from working with this organization, I also attend events where I, along with my co-writers, are asked to share our experiences with our film and of our involvement with the movement for reproductive choice. |
