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Lakita Garth

In addition to speaking to youth across America, Lakita has also been a guest on several TV shows, including; MTV's Sex in the 90's, Politically Incorrect, The Image Awards, The American Television Awards, Nightline, Sally Jesse Raphael, and Montel Williams.

Still single and a virgin, this brainy beauty queen has re-defined the meaning of the "sexual revolution." Lakita has tons of tips on dating, great relationships and what you should (or shouldn't!) do to find Mr. or Miss Right.

On July 16, 1998, Lakita shared many of her ideas with a United States Congressional Subcommittee where she was invited to speak about the high cost of pre-marital sex and teen pregnancy.

Following is the speech Lakita gave to The U.S. House Committee's Small Business Subcommittee on Empowerment, chaired by Rep. Mark Souder. The 1998 hearings focused on the social and economic consequences of teenage pregnancy.

"I am a '20-something' year old black female, a former 2nd-runner up to Miss Black America, an entertainer, president of a corporation, and a virgin. I've had the unique opportunity to be invited by School Districts, Abstinence groups, and even state organizations such as the Department of Health and Human Services and Office of Family Planning in California, to share the message of abstinence.

"I've spoken to nearly a million teenagers of different racial and socio-economic backgrounds in assemblies across America over the past 9 years. My greatest motivation in doing so is to empower them with some of the same tools I was fortunate enough to grow up with, which I feel are lacking in our culture today. The first thing I communicate to teens and adults alike is the fact that abstinence is not just shaking ones finger at a generation and telling them to 'just say no' to sex. Abstinence is a lifestyle. It is mastering the art of:

"I grew up near a project community in Southern California in which Money Magazine said in the late 80's was one of the worst places in America to raise children. After serving in Korea and Viet Nam my father died of cancer a few years after his retirement. Therefore my mother, a primary school teacher, was left to raise my four older brothers and myself.

"An abstinence message wasn't very popular in our community and she was thought to be quite old-fashioned for insisting that her children practice self-control, self-discipline, and the delay of self-gratification- in all areas. We indeed were the laughing stock of the community, but the proof is in the pudding and here's a taste of its results. Of all those who grew up with my brothers in that community, we were the only complete family to make it out.

"Moreover, my mother raised a doctor, lawyer, engineer, a career naval serviceman, and I finished college in less than four years. Abstinence is not a 'just say no' program that exclusively applies to sex but a lifestyle that spills over into every aspect of a young person's life. (read more »)

(Used with permission of LoveMatters.com)