Disclaimer: I am not a professional! If you want to find a professional sex educator please look at my "Resources" page. If you have any questions, feel free to ask on my ask site: FYsexeducationquestions, though check out my FAQ first!
Personal FYSE post
Generally I try and keep my personal life and FYSE somewhat separate but I just wanted to update everyone on my life a bit.
Even though I’m not christian by any stretch of the imagination I’ve joined my local Unitarian Universalist church. In the spring I’ll go through training in the OWL (Our Whole Lives) program which is one of the most comprehensive sex education programs in the United States. Today I got to help run a sermon centered around Pride and inclusion of the LGBTQAI+ community. I also got to do my first teaching experience, teaching youth religious education where we talked about bullying and starting GSAs (Gay Straight Alliances) and other LGBTQAI+ clubs at schools. It was an amazing experience and it just makes me think about how much growth I’ve gone through as an educator thanks in large part to running this tumblr.
I’m also hoping to get to work with the local center for equality and do AIDS education and testing. I’m going to be calling them sometime this month to ask if they need volunteers.
I’m hoping these opportunities will make me a better sex educator and bring a new level to this blog.
Everyone who lives in the UK , please read
clarinets-cats-and-the-cutter:
Hey :) There is a possibility that issues such as equality, consent, abuse and same-sex relationships could be made a compulsory part of the curriculum due to an amendment to the Children and Families Bill proposed by Labour.
I think this would be great and important, but unfortunately, its likely to be unpopular, so would like to ask (if you support it, of course) whetherr you would please take part in emailing MPs and sharing this.
I’ve put a draft email below. Please put a postal adress at the bottom as MPs must have proof that you live in their constituency. Find your MPs email adress at www.findyourmp.parliament.gov , the vote is on Tuesday , so send and share
[MP’s name here]I’m writing to you as your constituent of [constituency here], requesting that you please vote in favour of the New Clause 20 of the Children and Families Bill on Tuesday 11 June 2013, to make the important issues of , sexual violence, domestic violence, sexual consent and same-sex relationships be a compulsory part of the national curriculum.
The “Curriculum for Life Campaign”, elected nationally by the young people of the UK and currently the focus of the UK Youth Parliament, shows this is an issue many people find extremely important and are dissatisfied with how it is being addressed. Although, at our current age, most of us cannot vote, we are turning to our MPs to please support this Campaign.
It is not enough to assume that these issues will be taught to children by their families, and that if we just teach other subjects, it will discourage their engagement in risky behaviour. Even Ofsted recently found that PSHE is not good enough in a “substantial proportion of schools” and that this is leaving young people vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
Research by Women’s Aid and Avon found that 50% of 16-18 year olds wouldn’t know where to go to get support if affected by domestic abuse. A YouGov poll in 2010 found that almost a third of 16-18-year-old girls say they have been subjected to unwanted sexual touching at school, and the NSPCC found that a third of girls in relationships aged 13-17 have experienced physical or sexual violence in relationships, while one in 16 of this group reported experiencing rape.
Although it is a Labour campaign, the issues are apolitical. It is something we should all want to address, not just supporting feminism or LGBTQ rights, but Human Rights in general.
The New Clause 20 of the Children and Families Bill could make a difference to this.
I anticipate hearing of your support of the New Clause 20.
Thank you very much,[name here]
[Ideally address here to prove you are a constituent]
No, Texas Law Does Not Say You Can Shoot an Escort Who Refuses to Have Sex
A misreading of the verdict in a strange and upsetting Texas case has gone viral, since Gawker claimed: “Texas Says It’s OK to Shoot an Escort If She Won’t Have Sex With You.” Texas law does not say that, and the jury didn’t say that either. Pushing the idea that an “Insane Texas Law Made it Legal for a Man to Kill a Prostitute” is irresponsible; it misinforms the public and sends a terrible message to violent misogynists.It is not in dispute that the defendant, Ezekiel Gilbert, paid the victim, Lenora Frago, $150 for 30 minutes of escort services advertised on Craigslist. After Frago refused to have sex with him, the defendant shot her. Frago was paralyzed and the defendant was charged with aggravated assault. When she died seven months later Gilbert was indicted for murder instead.
At trial, defense attorneys made the shocking argument that Gilbert was justified in shooting Frago because she had stolen from him and Texas law permits the use of deadly force to defend one’s property at night. That a defense was raised in this case based on Texas’ awful defense of property law is certainly newsworthy and even more reason to reform that law. But there is no evidence that the jury acquitted based on the defense of property law in the first place.
The much more plausible reason for the verdict is that the jury believed the defendant’s claim that he didn’t intend to shoot the victim. Per Texas’ homicide statute, the prosecution needed to prove that Gilbert “intentionally or knowingly” killed Frago or intended to cause her “serious bodily injury.” The defense argued that Gilbert lacked the requisite intent for murder because when he shot at the car as Frago and the owner of the escort service drove away, he was aiming for the tire. The bullet hit the tire and a fragment, “literally the size of your fingernail,” according to Defense Attorney Bobby Barrera, hit Frago. Barrera does not believe the jury acquitted because of the defense of property law. He believes they acquitted because they believed Gilbert didn’t mean to shoot her.
Another reason why we need to be thoughtfully critical of the media we consume. Gawker isn’t exactly known for its accurate, fact-based headlines. They wrote something and the media rang with it! It’s still upsetting that he was acquitted, but at least let’s not misread the situation for what it really is.
I personally (CSPH mod, Lui) apologize for reblogging this to our followers, as it was terribly misleading and I kept finding links back to the Gawker article, when I should’ve looked further.
As FYfeminists says, this is a reminder (to me and to all) to be critical in what we read and share, especially when it comes to controversial topics such as sexuality, sex work, etc, as the information can be easily manipulated, morphed and exaggerated to prove or invalidate a point.
(via entropyandflux)
(via ace-muslim)
Spaghetti in a Hot Dog Bun: A Children’s Book Review
The next mental health post I’ll do is on Acute Stress Disorder. If anyone has any tips or experiences please feel free to share!
I’ll also be doing one on Complex PTSD if anyone wants to chime in about that as well!
PTSD
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is an anxiety disorder that is caused by a traumatic event.
One of my goals of FYSE that I don’t think I state enough is to encourage young people to get involved in their community, especially centered around Sex Education, Sexuality, Gender, and other related issues as well as just activism in general.
Ever since I was a teen and I saw how society viewed teenagers I thought of young people as a major untapped resource. We can change the world, we just need people to tell us that and support us. Whenever I turned 20 I felt like I hadn’t utilized being a teenager enough, which is one of the reasons as a 20 something I now feel like it’s my duty to encourage young people to utilize their youth.
If any of you are involved in a really amazing project or organization let me know! If any of you work for an organization that needs more volunteers or you know of a good organization that needs volunteers I’d be happy to signal boost.
Seriously, all of you can do something to make the world a better place regardless of your physical or mental abilities. Just keep yourself open to opportunities and I’ll do what I can to tell you about opportunities you can check in to.
