CMU students talk about importance of sex education
Central Michigan University junior Lee Petterson, left, laughs with Central Michigan University senior Kailen Scott, right, during Let's Talk About Sex, Baby! event, Thursday, Nov. 21, in Bovee University Center Rotunda. Scott and Petterson were laughing after watching an attendee try to play pin the clit on the vulva. (CM-Life | Zoey Morse)
Feminists for Change, a registered student organization, hosted Let's Talk About Sex, Baby! on Nov. 21 in the Bovee University Center. The event was to inform students about sex education and bridge a gap of information about resources for safe sex and relationships.
The event was also supported by various other groups and organizations such as Mount Pleasant Health Department, Spectru, RISE, The Pride Center, Transcend and Lego club.
Topics discussed were queer sex ed, comprehensive sex ed and why people with vaginas are at higher risk of STIs. The event also included "Jeopardy!" with the health department and discussions about queer relationships.
Senior Kailen Scott helped run and plan the event. Scott said she doesn't believe the educational system does enough in terms of comprehensive sex education. She said that LGBTQ+ sex ed, queer sex ed and sex ed in general isn't taught well to students before college.
“I've heard so many people, myself included, that didn't have great sex ed or talks about relationships in high school,” Scott said. “We're not talking about how to do it safely. It's not talked about where to go to get resources.”
Scott said many students get to college and don’t know that condoms expire, that there are female condoms, or how to get sexually transmitted infections testing done.
Scott said our society needs to focus on destigmatizing sex and being healthy. She said it is okay to not know everything about sex, but it is also okay to talk about it and learn.
“I wanted this event not just to be about sex but to be about healthy relationships,” Scott said.
Senior CeceliaTresenriter was representing Spectrum with the intent of spreading information about queer sex education.
“Not everybody is coming from a situation or a background where they've been exposed to sex education,” Tresenriter said. “In college, they're finding themselves in situations where they need to know how to keep themselves safe and make their choices for themselves and not just what their friends or someone who's pressuring them into doing something is going to tell them.”
Elijah Pryor was representing the Mount Pleasant Pride Center, a local non-profit dedicated to supporting the queer community and uplifting its members by doing outreach and education.
“My goal for today is to help people find more community,” Pryor said. “I want to make the queer community feel a little bit less alone because it can be very lonely, especially in more rural areas. When you aren't really represented or it kind of feels like you're the only person at school that's like you.”
Scott said it's important in a big population of people to show that sex education is important in day-to-day life.
“It's just a great event to come together, have fun and destigmatize sex ed while creating community,” she said.
