As two students who work at the Tufts Women's Center, we have been both inspired and troubled by recent discussions regarding the Sex Fair. We want to call attention to the very discussion of the Sex Fair as a potential avenue for increased insight into the values we believe the Sex Fair seeks to promote.
At the heart of the Sex Fair is an effort to enhance understandings about sexuality. It seeks to empower individuals to understand their needs and comforts about sex, negotiate sexual activity and have positive consensual sexual experiences, should they choose to have them.
Expressions of public sexuality, such as the Sex Fair, is not the only healthy sexuality, and private sexuality is not unhealthy sexuality - people can still lead healthy sexual lives and have healthy sexual negotiation even if they do not want to discuss sex in a public forum such as the Sex Fair. However, to connect public discussions about sexuality with rape has the potential to vilify the types of discourses that are intended to encourage students to make healthy and positive decisions.
Discourse is productive; follow-up discussion allows us to examine the prerogatives of the Sex Fair while also affirming that alternative viewpoints are valuable and constructive. While we are somewhat saddened that some people felt alienated or uncomfortable about the Sex Fair, we feel that criticism can only serve to make events like this better in the future.
What can feminists and other activists do to reach people who are less comfortable talking freely about sexual health? Would these people feel comfortable approaching a medical professional at Health Services? Would they attend an informal luncheon held at the Women's Center about various health issues such as the HPV vaccine, Plan B (the morning-after pill) or birth control?
Tufts already offers a number of services to address issues of sexuality and sexual health. Susan Gilbert, the director of the Women's Center, is available for consultation and collaboration about potential projects. Health Services clinicians are educated and available to give prescriptions for birth control, administer vaccines, and provide health counseling.
Susan Mahoney in Health Services is a psychiatric nurse trained in sexual assault counseling. Counseling Services has counselors available for weekly sessions. Student Sexual Assault Response Assistance has student counselors for anyone who wants to confidentially discuss issues of sex-related violence.
Let's refocus our discussions and realize that everyone on the Tufts campus deserves to get this valuable information, and we have a collective responsibility to do the best we can to meet everyone's respective comfort levels.
