Are Muslim men allowed to deceive Muslim women?

I happened to be over at bakkah.net and one fatwa caught my eye. Mind you, normally, I do not seek out bakkah.net for fatawa. I just happened to be there. Anyway, when I was reading this particular fatwa that actually made a hukm allowing a brother the right to deceive potential wives by withholding his marital status a sense of sadness overcame me, a defeated feeling and I immediately had sought Allah's protection. However, still I am left feeling like a piece of me is being chipped away by these sort of injustices. I have nothing but respect for professors of Islam in the mumlaka like Shaykh Bazmool hafidhahullah, but as a Muslim woman I am tired of being disappointed by those whom Allah has given authority to. Do Muslim men still love, honor and protect Muslim women? Or are we as Muslim women doomed to lose our rights, respect and position in this ummah like those monothesist women who preceeded us? Allahul Musta'an. I don't know what the future holds but as I prepare to bring my first child into this ummah I can do nothing but pray with all of my might that he is able to grow up into a man that will have pride for this deen and love the Muslims that moves him to fight to uphold his sisters as best as he can.

To have husnul thun for the shaykh hafidhahullah who answered the question, no arabic text nor sound nor any evidences accompany the fatwa that was posted. So may be inshallah what I have read is not all that was stated. Maybe I am mistaked. I hope I am. Can you all read it? May be there is another way to look at it? May be I am missing something and it is not what it appears to be? May be someone has a different fatwa on the issue...

Sad thing is I know many brothers from the streets of North Philadelphia or Newark or Baltimore have already read it and taken it as the gospel without researching it. Can't you hear them talking,

"...yea, ock, you don't need to let that bint know nothing about your other bint and kids. Didn't you read that fatwa on bakkah.net from shaykh baaazmool? Don't let her wali punk you. Tell him to fear Allah. Once yall make it halal it ain't none his business no how..."


Allahul Musta'an.





QUESTION

If a man wants to take a second wife, is it permissible for him to not mention the fact that he is already married? And if he does not tell the second wife about the existing first marriage, is his marriage to the second woman valid?

ANSWER by Shaykh Muhammad 'Umar Baazmool, instructor at Umm Al-Quraa University in Makkah

It is not a required condition to marry a second wife that one must inform her of an existing marriage. However, from good manners of living together, and from the ettiquettes of cooperation upon good things, is that she should be informed. I am not saying that a man must seek permission from his wife (to marry a second wife), but she should be informed.

And the man must fear Allaah, the Glorified and Exalted, regarding his first wife and he must act justly between them. The Messenger (sallallaahu 'alayhe wa sallam) mentioned a man who will come on the Day of Judgement and one side of his face will be dropped to the ground, a result of his lack of fairnes between his wives. [1]

So we advise this man to fear Allaah, the Glorified and Exalted, regarding his first wife, and to be sure that he acts justly between them.

His marriage to the second wife is valid, even if he did not inform the first wife, or let the second wife know. But from kind interaction and mutual cooperation upon good affairs, he should make her aware, and Allaah knows best.

SOURCE

This was translated exclusively for www.bakkah.net from a cassette recording with the knowledge and permission of the shaykh, file no. AAMB016, dated 1423/6/25.


Ayaat on deception

Allah-Him from Whom nothing is hidden, either on Earth or in
Heaven. (Surah Al 'Imran, 3:5)

Do you not see that Allah knows what is in the heavens and on
Earth?Three men cannot confer together secretly without Him being the fourth of them, or five without Him being the sixth of them, or fewer than that or more without Him being with them wherever they are. Then He will inform them on the Day of Rising of what they did. Allah has knowledge of all things. (Surat al-Mujadala, 58:7)

Do they not know that Allah knows what they keep secret and what they make public? (Surat al-Baqara, 2:77)

He knows the eyes' deceit and what people's breasts conceal.(Surah Ghafir, 40:19)

"Morrocan women are not solution - or the problem"

Over at Umarlee.com there is interesting conversation going on about an issue I touched on briefly last summer and that is the trend of African American brothers going to Morroco to "buy" wives.




I don't really care much to discuss the preferences of Black Muslim men. Everyone has preferences. Although, I think in this case it may look worse as well as imply different things about those Black American men who go after Morrocan sisters because they are Black Americans. There is a undeniable historical conditioning that has occur with much, if not all of Black American and it plays an important part in diciphering whether their preferences are genuine or examples of self hatred. That's another topic though.

Umar stated that many Black Muslimaat are bitter over the fact that an increasing amount of black brothers are buying Morrocan sisters. That's where I want to pick up on. There were a lot hostile comments left in the comment section on the blog I did on the case of the brother (may Allah have mercy on him) who may have been killed by his wife (may Allah have mercy on her as well) after he went to Morroco and married a young Morrocan sister. A lot of the comments were infact directed towards our Morrocan sisters. What I want to discuss is it rightly placed?

Granted, I don't get how Muslim parents can let any man; black, Arab or blue, come from a foreign land, flash some bills and then be allowed to marry their virgin daughters. I don't get it. It's shameful and an unIslamic step backwards and away from the honor, dignity and rights that Allah has given the Muslimah. I remember the one time I had attended a wedding party of a brother back in the states after 2 years of saving to get his Morrocan woman into the states. I felt a sense of shame for having come to witness the event. The sister spoke no English and looked like a deer infront of headlights in that sea of unfamiliar faces. She was alone, all alone. Granted this was three years ago and to the best of my knowledge she is still married to the brother, but I have no knowledge of the intimate details of their marriage. Have they bonded? Maybe in some way, afterall, Im sure he is taking his "rights". Though given the fact that her husband doesnt speak her language and isnt like any of the men in her family nor of those she grew up around or had even the chance to be exposed through media, I wonder how in the world she could truly find apart of him to love genuinely? And if their love is more superficial and material, are black American Muslimahs missing out?

I don't know. Different people think differently about things. I sure haven't met any Morrocan sisters married to wealthy black American Muslim men. For the most part, the brothers who I've seen going to Morroco are brothers working 9-5s or less than that, some are selling oils or incense. Is that anything to envy? And if you do as a Muslimah, what does that say about your own level of self value?

I don't think Morrocan women are the solution for black American Muslim men nor do I think they are the problem. Infact, many of the Morrocan sisters become victims just like black American sisters because for the most part, the ones are being "sold" to African American brothers are uneducated and quickly become burdenned with children and have to use government support. If anything, I think more needs to be done to protect our sisters from third world countries so that they are not falling into the hands of the brothers who need not wed in the first place.

Cops: Jealousy drove Bigamist wife to kill

http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/story?id=3463580&page=1

Was this for the love of money or more along the lines of a thin line between love and hate?

I don't know. May Allah have mercy and grant ease to this sister and may Allah have mercy and expiate the sins of our deceased brother. May Allah also grant ease to salafy communities in Philadelphia and allow them to rectify their ways because once this case reaches it trial date it going to become cooler water talk in many homes. Philadelphia's salafy communities are going to be under the spotlight and the things that most of us Muslims already know - their notorious poor treatment of sisters despite the endless durus from the mimbar and numerous telelinks with the mashayik in mumlaka, their hidden polygynous society that is open to any brother to join whether he is fresh out of jail on drug charges or a convicted pedophile, the secret sisterhood of Muslim women who support those pratices of the brothers and who vehemently boycott salafiyat who can't or don't want to "get with the program". The "on it & off it lists", the welfare fraud that many sisters knowingly commit so that they can enter the polygynous society, the physical abuse of many sisters there, the child neglect on the part of the sex addicted brothers who spread their seeds like water throughout the city but don't have even 1/4 of the money to support them which makes them abandon them - I could go on but you get the picture. This sister is in for the fight of her life and we can assume her lawyers are going to grab the temporary insanity defense on this and use ever ounce of blood they can find to prove it - Allaahulmusta'aan.

I received one comment on the other blog that was very hostile to the brother's second wife in Morroca. My first thought was to delete because it has nasty name calling in it and we know such name calling against other Muslims is not becoming of any Muslims, male or female. I hope the one who posted has since made tawba, and if not please do. You may be upset and that is understandable, but trade your hasanat on yaumil qiyama because of anger. Make the tawba. But I left it there because since maybe early 2000 I have heard many African American sisters talk secretly about their dislike of Morrocan women. Many AA salfy men especially the older brothers have gone to poor Morrocan cities and bought wives for very cheap mahr by US and Gulf standards and brought them back to the states. Sisters are angry with this because the "you can't afford it" agrument that have stood on for decades falls by the wayside when brothers throw out the "Morrocan trump cards" and their natural responses, "She doesn't need much."

Is it the Morrocan sisters fault that many American marriages have fallen apart once they enter the family? Are these sisters really looking to break up families? And what I really want to discuss with any Morrocan sisters if your have married in such a way is why on earth are your families sending their virgin daughters to the west with men they don't know anything about (him, his livlihood, family, etc) or how she is going to be treated?

More trouble for the salafy Muslims in Philadelphia

Prosecutors: Murdered MontCo. Man Had Second Wife

(AP) MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pa. A Muslim man who was killed in his bed early Sunday had taken a second wife in Morocco and planned to travel there later that day, prosecutors said.

Jereleigh Morton's first wife, Myra, told police she chased after the intruder who shot him in their $1 million suburban home. But police found no signs of a break-in and focused their attention on the victim's marital status after reading Myra's diaries.

Myra Morton, 47, had reluctantly agreed to the second marriage and even traveled to Morocco this year to sanction it under Muslim law, authorities said. Prosecutors, however, think her husband may have married the other woman -- a 20-something he met on the Internet -- even earlier than Myra knew.

"We're working under the theory that she sort of approved it after the fact," Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce L. Castor Jr. said Tuesday. "I think there was discussion, and she felt pressured into agreeing to allow it."

No charges have been filed, but police took cheek swabs from Myra Morton to compare to DNA found at the scene, court papers show.

"We haven't excluded her as the killer," Castor said.

The Mortons, who hail from North Philadelphia, converted to Islam about 20 years ago. They lived in a small city row house until a medical malpractice settlement over their teenage daughter's death netted them a reported $8 million in 2005.

They paid $1 million cash that year for a sprawling suburban home near Ambler, and Jereleigh retired from his job as a plumber to dabble in real estate. Their surviving daughter also lived with them, and was home Sunday morning, along with her husband and baby.

"I never saw any problems or concerns about them or their relationship," said lawyer Charles Hehmeyer of Philadelphia, who represented the Mortons in the wrongful-death case. "She's a nice lady and has endured a lot of tragedy in her life."

Myra Morton has not retained a criminal lawyer, and the family's home telephone rang unanswered Tuesday.

Jereleigh Morton, 47, was shot twice, at least once in the head. A gun holster was found on the dresser, and a handgun was outside a sliding glass door that leads from the bedroom to the yard.

Myra Morton called 911 at about 3:30 a.m. to report the shooting.

Police, working with the U.S. State Department, are still trying to piece together a timeline of the couple's overseas travels. And they do not yet know the identity of the second wife, Castor said.

"In March '07 my husband married a woman from Morocco. Before this he was showing strange behavior to me, going out staying late, on computer all the time," Myra Morton wrote in a diary, according to a police affidavit.

She discovered that her husband had sent the woman money for a dowry. She told police they had about $6 million in assets.

Myra Morton wrote that she went to Morocco and even ran around to get the paperwork in order, only to have her husband grow increasingly aloof.

"I go give him the permission, because he argues with me when I protest this marriage," the diary reads.

He was scheduled to leave again for Morocco at 7 p.m. Sunday, a trip Myra Morton had backed out of, said Risa Ferman, an assistant district attorney in Montgomery County.

Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said that a minority of Muslims take second wives, and that Islamic scholars would differ on whether one could do so while living in the United States.

"Some scholars may say it's not permitted at all in a society where two legal marriages would be outlawed," Hooper said.

Castor was equally unsure of how Pennsylvania's polygamy ban might apply. He did not know if the state would have jurisdiction over a marriage in Morocco.

In the wake of the slaying, the point is moot.

"We're doing a homicide investigation, not an adultery (case)," Castor said.

Muslim women need solutions, not excuses

I really didn't expect to receive as many comments as I did for the blog Muslim women of color and the choice of men. Many thanks to brother Tariq for linking to it. I'd also like to say that I thought all the comments were thought provoking and well written. If nothing more I honestly appreciated the imput. Marriage and race sensitive subjects and I think everyone handled my blog whether they agreed with it or not very maturely.

Alright so that was sweet stuff. Moving on to the bitter. The thing is I completely agree that the causes of the situation amongst our sisters and brothers are vast. What bothered me is that none of those who disgreed with my point of view offered any solutions. Over and over again it was mentioned that I was being too hard on Muslim men of color or too easy on Arab/Asian Muslim men but not a word was written that actually dealt with the topic which was the state of our sisters. Collectively the message I gathered was, "sister, its too bad that you Muslim women of color are unhappy, oppressed, abused and devalued -- just don't talk about US (or our men) because x,y,and z." Truth is, I could keep quiet and take that route, but I recognize the importance and right of not only my own happiness and safety as a Musleemah but also my sisters.


I'll say it again, there are probably a million reasons for the state of our sisters and brothers of color (specifically from afro/caribean/latin disporas) having the problems that they have. And we all can tell stories of those who have broke the mold to become shinning examples of upright Muslim families. We do need to have more talk about those sisters and brother who are doing good and raising strong Muslim families to combat the other harsher pictures out there. Yet, the harsher pictures are the truth and we have to deal with them.

For instance, I remember about 5 years ago when I living in the states a swarm of African American brother leaving from several different cities headed towards North Africa. Were they going to make hijrah? No! Were they going to study Islam and Arabic? Nope? What it was was that they had got the hook up in a Morrocan village where it was said that they had "tons of women" who wouldn't ask for much (in terms of mahr) and were willing to go live in America (with strangers). For the record all the brothers were not the creme of the crop. Some of them I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. Though there were some who were good catches. Very nice brothers Mashallah who most in the communities would vouch for. They're still very nice brothers and they have gone on to become really great husbands, Alhamdulilah. I don't have any problems with interracial marriages. I'm all for it obviously. What I do have a problem with is brothers (the most of who took issue with my call for Muslim women of color to marry outside of their norms) who will jump over rows of good Muslim sistas of color from the west with no problems or concerns and then have a mouth full of hot air to say things like, "it's known that Middle Eastern men don't go for black women," when their counterparts are encouraged to look in the same (assumingly) green pastures they themselves have found comfort in?

Was it a hurt ego that makes the claws come out like that brother? Allah has given women the ability to be women and all that that entails such as being feminine, charming, kind and sweet. This womaness is enhanced for the Musleemah inshallah as we have been given the best of adab and akhlaq to shower our mate with. I don't think any women of any one color has less appeal than other women of other colors/ethnicities. Attraction may start with physical aspects, but for it to grow lots of different areas have to be there. I think Muslim women by nature are suited better for interracial marriages than non Muslim women. This ummah is big Alhamdulilah and we start interacting and learning to adapt to various cultures within the ummah early on.

Interestingly enough I have yet to meet a sister of any color say that her problem was attracting brothers and I have friends of all races, sizes and ages. The problem is the TYPE of brothers they are attracting and the TYPE of brothers that themselves are attracted to. There are many sisters of color who are stuck on brothers from hard backgrounds (especially African Americans). Street brothers or thuggish brothers etc. Wallahi, they have a strong following and it's like the farther down on their luck they are the more sisters are willing to give (sacrifice) of themselves to keep the brothers afloat.

I don't blame the brothers. I'm not blaming the brothers. This is Musleemah to Musleemah talk. We need to do better for ourselves and for our children as Musleem woman and that can't happen until we make some hard decision and choose to make better choices for our own survival and livelihood. And again, I know someone is going to come out the woodworks and say how their husband came off deathrow by the mercy of Allah, worked 3 jobs and was a better paten than that of their type A ex Muslim husband from bangladesh who wasn't man enough to do and for that I'll join you in saying Alhamdulilah. May Allah keep you both and give that wonderful Muslim man and men like that their full reward. It happens, just not for the majority. For the majority of women, Muslim or not, marrying an ex-con/ex drug dealer/addict/con man/pimp isn't going get you happily ever after. What it might get you is an STD or two, bills, some heartache and other sorts of fitna. Why take that chance from the beginning? Why procreate with someone who may not be able to provide for his ownself much less for a wife or children? It doesn't add up.

What is the solution? That is the question. How can sisters who are stuck being serial divorcees find happiness in marriage? How can Muslim women find good Muslim men of ANY color? What type of changes do Muslim women especially Muslim women of color need to make in themselves inorder to break the cycle of bad marriages for themselves and inshallah as well as their children? What are Muslim women of color not doing that we need to do?

I posted one solution already. Inshallah, now here is your chance to post yours.

Muslim women of color and the choice of men....

Im of mixed heritage, Guyanese and Native American. But I grew up identifying closely with African American/Black girls in terms of my behavior and outlook. Though due to the community in which I grew up most friends I had in my neighborhood as a youngsters were either Indian or Pakistanian.

I did have two African American friends, Hajar, who I wrote about before and then Maleekah. Hajar and Maleekah were both born Muslim and have Muslim families and were good Muslim girls. Although, unfornately many (not all!) of the Pakistanian and Indian sisters who I grew up with and who I love for the sake of Allah, have gone on to become "cultural" Muslims. My definition of a cultural Muslim is someone who was born and raised in a practicing Muslim home but grew up to become either very laxed in their application of Islam or completely non practicing. The only real claim most cultural Muslims have is to the "culture" of Islam that they may still fondly cherish. And may Allah guide them and us all.

But that's not what I am wanted to write about. What I wanted to write about is Muslim women of color, specifically us brown and black Musleemat and the type of men we choose for marriage. My two African American friends have both as I said been wonderful friends to me. I talk to them both atleast twice a month, (which is a lot considering how expensive it is to call the States from here). The thing is that both are divorced. Hajar has been divorced many times and has a couple of children from those marriages and Maleekah just recently went through her first divorce after waiting many years to wed and is expecting her first baby all by herself. While myself and all my Indian and Pakistanian friends , some of who have less zeal (not all!) for Islam than either Hajar or Maleekah, have been married for many years and have seemingly happy and solid relationships with their husbands.

What could be the problem? That's what I spent 56 minutes talking with Maleekah about a couple of days ago. Now, she thought my conclusions were very controversial so if today you're feeling a bit sensitive now would be the best time to exit my blog. For the rest of you hanging strong, these are my opinions based on my own observations. If you differ, which I expect some will, feel free to leave a comment.

Hajar and Maleeka both have only been married to African American men, mostly reverts to Islam. My other friends all married to either raised Muslims who are Arabs (as I am), white Americans or Asian Muslim men. I'll be blunt from here on out. The problem that I see many religious Muslim sisters of color have with marriage or staying married is that they chose the wrong men to marry from the beginning. And to be even more blunt, religious Muslim women of color have the hardest of times with African American and Latino brothers. Yeah, I know it hurts to put it out there like that, but it needs to be said. Don't take it the wrong way. It's not meant to be a put down of western minority Muslim men. I will actually be the first to say that Alhamdulilah there are some wonderful Black and Latino Muslim men out there in the world who are great, loving, hard working family men who are productive members of their Muslim communities. Though they are an endangered group. Inshallah I am hoping they can make a fierce come back because they're needed, though right now every time a sister of color tells me that she is going through it in her marriage it's at the hands of a Black or Latino Muslim man.

From lying to laziness to cheating/polygyny to extreme poverty to physical and mental abuse to insert whatever problem you want black/brown Muslim women are at the top of the list enduring it. That's a problem and we really need to change that.



What I know to be a good remedy to this problem is for our sisters to make better husband selections. Know the type of men who you need to steer clear of and choose the opposite. To do this you dont have to x off brothers of those beautiful darker hues that many of you prefer. Allah has made all types of Muslim men and the best thing is that we are blessed in that Islam is found every where on this earth. Black and brown Muslim women are really not disadvantaged as many would have us fooled to believe. There's the whole continent of Africa where Allah has put some of the most beautiful Muslim men of color in the world at in places like Nigeria, Ghana, Ethiopia, Egypt, Morroco, Somalia, Sudan and Eriteria and it's an added plus with our North African brothers because they are Arabic speakers. There are also really beautiful brown Muslim men in South east Asia in countries such as Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia and the Phillippines just to name a few and what I love about South east Asia is that you find many of our brothers there are well versed in the Qur'an. For those sisters who are not hung up on color there are an increasing number of White American and European brothers out there single, looking and open to interracial marriage with brown and black women. Our middle eastern brothers are also a wonderful option and it seems that Musleemat of color are least likely to consider marrying this way for a number of reasons but mostly sisters tell me that they feel that our Arab brothers are only interested in our White western sisters. That could be the farthest from the truth. If you're single and know of a good single Arab brother in your community, go ahead and enquire about him. Insha'Allah, you'd be surprise how many Arabs would prefer women of color. I would suggest marrying our brothers from Yemen, but I'm biased lol. If you can snag a Saudi, Allahu Akbar, even better. It's not impossible. I actually do know of two African American sisters who are married to Saudis and they have beautiful stable, long term marriages.


I can't say I know the reason why marriages amongst western minority Muslims are doing so poorly. Allahu Alim. We may never know. What's apparent is that black and brown sisters need good husbands. Babies are being made and these Muslim children need and have to be raised upon Islam in healthy and loving environments with strong Muslim male role models. And I know someone is thinking it, but it should already be known that the first qualities that any Muslim woman looking to wed must put foremost importance on is the religion and character of any prospects she has. I dont want anyone to leave a comment and say, "who cares about race, deen is most important anyway." Good, strong deen is the most important asset a man can have. There, I said it for you and more importantly I believe it. Now, let's move on because in order to get your the rent or house paid and to have a harmonious marriage brothers need to be well rounded in all areas of life and not just in his pursuit of deeni knowldge.

Other things sisters can do besides not choosing men that statistically don't do well in marriages is to look into his traits. Let's face it bad husbands can and are found in all races, the percentages are just a little different. What to do now? Look at his family and upbringing. Are his parents alive? If so, are they still married? Or was he raised in a single headed family? Did he grow up around domestic violence? How many of his siblings (especially brothers) are in good, strong marriages? How many of his siblings are divorced? Is he previously married? If so, how many times? How many sexual partners has he had (before and after Islam, if he is a revert)?

Do you get the picture? You have to dig deep and be vigilant about finding a match for your own values as a Muslim wife. You have to know already that you deserve good and will not accept less than, half way or left overs. It does require hard work on your part and the part of those assisting you Inshallah to marry a good Muslim man. But You can find him and he can be a great Muslim husband inshallah. You can! Believe that. Trust in that Allah does provide and that whatever you want and desire Allah can give it to you in this life as well as in the hereafter. You can acheive it, inshallah.

Westerners 'are more promiscuous'

If you have time, read this article. This just reiterates to me that Muslims are following their non Muslim counter parts as the prophet Muhammad (saaws) had forewarned. In the west, it's very common for a Muslim woman/man (especially minorities) to marry early, divorce, and then marry and divorce again and again. Islamically, there is no sin involved as long as the marriage was legally contracted before the intimacy took place and Muslims are quick to point this out defensively. True, let's move past the surface. Our communities are sufferring. The psychological strain of this type of abnormal pattern (whether its being committed by a Muslim woman or man) and it's foundations are clear cut, it's a sickness. Healthy and strong families cannot maintain themselves when its leaders are involved in promiscuous behaviors-halal or not.

"People in western countries tend to have more sexual partners than those in the developing world, a study says."

Who would of thunk it?!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6101970.stm

Increased sexual partners linked to other riskier behavior

Can't control your desires?


By DAVID CRARY, AP National Writer
1 hour, 43 minutes ago



NEW YORK - It's a question that often prompts a boastful answer or a bashful one: How many sex partners have you had? Now the federal government says it has authoritative statistics, documenting that men are far more likely to play the field than women.

A new nationwide survey, using high-tech methods to solicit candid answers on sexual activity and illegal drug use, finds that 29 percent of American men report having 15 or more female sexual partners in a lifetime, while only 9 percent of women report having sex with 15 or more men.

The median number of lifetime female sexual partners for men was seven; the median number of male partners for women was four.

The survey, released Friday, is based on data collected from 1999 to 2002 for the National Center for Health Statistics, a branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In previous versions of this survey, participants were asked questions in face-to-face interviews. The CDC believes that caused underreporting of behaviors which might be viewed negatively, although the new survey did not provide any comparative results from earlier reports.

This time, data was gathered from 6,237 adults, aged 20 to 59, in what are called computer-assisted self-interviews — a method designed to provide complete privacy and produce more honest answers.

"This is the first time we've used this technique," said Dr. Kathryn Porter, who served as medical officer for the survey. "The participants have a headset on, they hear questions, they touch the screen with responses. There's no one else in the room and they can take as long as they want."

Porter said the findings would provide grist for further studies, notably on the prevalence and patterns of sexually transmitted diseases.

Though the survey results were presented by the CDC without subjective comment, they will likely provide ammunition to various parties in the ongoing national debate over sex education, cohabitation and access to birth control.

Many of the conservative groups aligned with the Bush administration on social issues promote the goal of sexual abstinence until marriage. The survey found only about 11 percent of never-married adults had remained chaste.

Among the other findings:

_About 96 percent of U.S. adults have had sex.

_Sixteen percent of adults first had sex before age 15, while 15 percent abstained from sex until at least age 21.

_The proportion of adults who first had sex before age 15 was highest for non-Hispanic blacks (28 percent) compared to 14 percent for both Mexican-Americans and non-Hispanic whites.

_Six percent of blacks abstained from sex until age 21 or older, fewer than Mexican-Americans (17 percent) or non-Hispanic whites (15 percent).

_Black men and women were more likely to report having 15 or more partners in a lifetime (46 percent and 13 percent, respectively) than other racial or ethnic groups.

_Seventeen percent of men and 10 percent of women reported having two or more sexual partners in the past year.

_Twenty-five percent of women and 17 percent of men reporting having no more than one partner of the other sex in their lifetime.

_Twenty-six percent of men and 17 percent of women have tried cocaine or other street drugs (not including marijuana) at some time in their life. Seven percent of men and 4 percent of women had done so within the past 12 months.

_Non-Hispanic whites had a higher percentage of ever using cocaine or street drugs (23.5 percent) than blacks (18 percent) or Mexican-Americans (16 percent).

_Adults who were married or had more than a high school education were less likely to use street drugs than others.

The survey, formally titled the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, did not include the homeless, prisons inmates or other institutionalized adults.

The questions about numbers of sexual partners specified heterosexual relationships, and thus the survey did not measure the extent of gay or lesbian sexual partnerships. However, Porter said there was no such specificity in the questions about ever having had sex or about the age of first sexual activity, so answers to those could have referred to straight or gay sex.

___

On the Net:

The survey: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/ad/ad384.pdf