Would you have a threesome? How far would you be willing to go with your partner? “Sexacation: The Best Sex Ed You’ll Ever Get!” addressed these topics and more in an open forum.
Melissa Goldman, a member of Hillel and an undeclared freshman, opened the discussion by seeing how the audience members felt about discussing various topics regarding sex and relationships.
“There is some stigma, and there is some nervousness when we talk about sex, so we’re gonna try to ease you guys into it,” Goldman said.
Members were asked to rate, on a scale from one to 10, their openness to 16 scenarios; the spectrum of responses was revealed anonymously.
When asked to reveal their level of comfort regarding a casual, non-committed relationship, responses were evenly dispersed throughout the scale. There was a similar response to when participants were asked how willingly they would try anal sex. However, when asked how comfortable one might feel about having sex without using a condom with a partner whom they knew had an STD, almost every participant ranked their level of comfort at a one.
Audience members participated in a game of “Sex Jeopardy,” answering questions about STDs, contraception and healthy relationships to spread awareness and clear up any gray areas with regards to sexual relationships.
Jazell Johnson, an instructor for REACH and a health educator for the Decker Student Health Services Center, spoke about misconceptions and concerns students might have surrounding sexual health and relationships, such as the difference between STDs and STIs.
“Generally, a disease is going to present some sign or symptom to let you know that something is wrong,” Johnson said. “A lot of the time most of the STIs are asymptomatic.”
Topics such as varying forms of protection, the proper use of such protection, consent and reproduction were also posed to audience members for open discussion. Two members of the audience volunteered in demonstrating how to properly apply a condom.
“Everyone is going to use birth control in their life at some point, and it’s really important to understand how it works,” said Eliza Gellis, a member of WSU and a sophomore majoring in English.
Johnson believes that the event was necessary for women on campus who, according to her, are not often given enough platforms to discuss issues that matter to them.
“The most important thing is that [women] do have a voice, that they are not just passively involved, that they can play an active role and protect themselves against things that they don’t have to contract,” Johnson said.
Monday night’s event in the University Union was organized by Girls Get Going, a student outreach group with a feminine health-based initiative. The night was co-sponsored by Hillel at Binghamton University, Women Empowered Support, Protect, Educate, Advocate and Know at Binghamton University (WE SPEAK BU), Delta Epsilon Mu, Women’s Student Union (WSU) and Real Education About College Health (REACH).