Now available in bookstores for parents and educators across America is a new resource that provides insights into how girls' see and deal with their struggles with sex, peer pressure, and body image. "Voices of a Generation: Teenage Girls Report on Their Lives Today," a report by Pamela Haag and the AAUW Educational Foundation, describes and analyzes the social and psychological pressures that American pre-teenage and teenage girls face every day. "Voices of a Generation," published by Marlowe & Company, is based on Sister-to-Sister Summits held across the nation and sponsored by AAUW to bring together teenage girls ages 11-17 to talk openly with each other about the most important issues they face today. From November 1997 to November 1998, girls participating in these summits answered questions about their daily lives. The report is a detailed analysis of responses by 2,100 girls.

"This report is a warning flag to America's parents and teachers. It reveals how teenage girls struggle with the pressures of sex, peer groups, and media images, and how these struggles vary according to race, ethnicity, and geography," said AAUW Educational Foundation President Sharon Schuster. According to the report, sex, boys, and pregnancy are the number one issues facing teenage girls today. One girl suggests that schools should "educate everyone that there are other ways of showing affection besides sex." Girls say they need the tools to learn how to say no and how to negotiate emotionally charged relationships.

In "Voices of a Generation," girls propose innovative solutions such as boy-girl summits to address the issues that boys and girls face together, better sex education that moves beyond "just say no," and portraying realistic images of women in the media.

"Voices of a Generation" reflects the conflicting pressures teenage girls face today - pressure to fit in, to look and act a certain way, to have sex, do drugs, and drink, and it notes the conflicting roles girls face as they struggle with what it means to be a girl today. Girls are torn between a traditional view of femininity and the contemporary realities of being a woman. As one girl writes, "Girls need a clear definition of girls or women. We are encouraged to be assertive by TV, magazines, and some adults, but we're often punished when we are."

"Adults across America are asking, 'What's wrong with schools today?'" said AAUW President Sandy Bernard. "These girls are coming up with some of the answers as they call on schools to improve sex education and challenge the media to present realistic and powerful images of women and girls."

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