Radio Ads Take on Myths about Condoms in Catholic and Latino Communities

Catholics for Choice and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health are proud to announce the launch of the first-ever Condoms4Life radio ads. The two Spanish-language ads take on myths about condom use in Catholic and Latino communities and highlight the importance of condom use and that Good Catholics Use Condoms. The radio campaign will launch in New York City on December 1, 2008 and will roll-out nationwide in 2009.

Using the core message that “Good Catholics Use Condoms,” the campaign presents a positive message to sexually active Catholics about responsibility and caring for others. The ads appeal to people of faith with one of the 60-second spots noting that: “I’m Catholic and there is nothing more important to me than protecting family and love. That’s why I talked to my grandson about condoms.” The ads remind people of faith that taking care of yourself and caring for each other means using condoms when you are sexually active.

The first ad features a grandmother speaking about her grandson, a gay man, who hears that Catholics are not supposed to use condoms. She tells her grandson, “I took care of you because I love you and if you love that man, you’ll take care of him, too.”

The second ad features a couple and models language that couples can use when discussing the importance of love, faith and condom use in their relationship. The ad concludes, “We are Catholics and people of faith and we know sex is sacred and that we need to take care of each other. And this means using a condom every time we have sex.”

“Despite a fierce misinformation campaign waged by the Catholic hierarchy, Catholic people the world over use condoms to prevent the transmission of HIV. Catholics use condoms because we know it is the responsible, loving and caring thing to do,” said Jon O’Brien, president of Catholics for Choice. “Catholics for Choice is delighted to partner with the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health in this innovative radio campaign because we are committed to making sure that that the younger generation of Latinos, who did not experience the scourge of AIDS in the 1980s and 1990s, are making sure that sex is safer and that our partners and ourselves are protected. At Catholics for Choice we recognize the special challenges Latino communities experience. Largely because our religion has not always been honest about sex, there exists an embarrassed silence around condom use—it is time for our communities to break the silence and proclaim, as these ads do, that good Catholics use condoms,” continued O’Brien.

“Latinos represent almost 20 percent of new HIV infections occurring in the United States and young Latinas are twice as likely to face an unintended pregnancy as the general population. The Latino community faces many health disparities and it is time that we protect ourselves and our partners,” said Silvia Henriquez, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. “Using condoms is one of the many ways that we can be proactive and make smart decisions about our sexual health,” continued Henriquez.

Visit www.Condoms4Life.org to listen to the ads and for more information.

The Condoms4Life radio ads will be featured on radio stations in New York City, December 1-14.

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