Sense Project

Mega meta pop phenomenon Lady Gaga is at it again!  As if I needed another reason to love the Lady, her newest tirade about teens and safer sex in this article Lady Gaga’s Message to Fans: “Have Safe Sex” totally made me smile and nod.

I really like this part, where she talks about her fans:

“I see them every night and they are so beautiful and precious and lovely, but some of them are insecure and very troubled and not confident,” she said.

“I meet them and they cry, and they say ‘Gaga you make me feel like I belong’.

“And I think to myself about that one girl or those hundreds of thousands of girls who meet that guy at a club who makes them feel like they belong and they don’t have that negotiation.”

I think she brings up a great point about how body image and self confidence can really impact a person’s enjoyment of sex and their ability to negotiate things like condom use.  Non?

Gaga also recently caused a fuss when she launched her own brand of designer condoms.

Also, whether a person is sexually active or not, they can still wear a garbage bag-like contraption on their heads a la Gaga - SEXY, SAFE AND STYLISH!

They come in all shapes and sizes!

Since yesterday was V-Day, I think that it’s particularly fitting to talk about the vagina.

Is yours too tight, too loose, too smelly or too hairy? Well, I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t matter. Vaginas come in all shapes and sizes (and scents). And, if you’re not comfortable with your own, then you might not be getting the most out of sex or your partner. So, take that hand mirror out and start exploring. I can guarantee a mesmerizing experience. *Teehee*

To finish things off, here is an excerpt from Eve Ensler’s My Angry Vagina monologue:

“Don’t believe him when he tells you it smells like rose petals when it’s supposed to smell like pussy. That’s what they’re doing, trying to clean it up, make it smell like bathroom spray or a garden. All those douche sprays, floral, berry, rain. I don’t want my pussy to smell like berries or rain. All cleaned up like washing a fish after you cook it. I want to taste the fish. That’s why I ordered it.”

Here is a “mash-up” clip of Killing Us Softly 3 with Jean Kilbourne. It’s definitely worth watching the whole thing but this will give you a good summary of what the talk is about:

Tags: Advertising, Body image, Femininity, feminism, Gender, Jean Kilbourne, Killing Us Softly 3, Masculinity, sexuality

Hi folks! Just wanted to let you know that during the month of February, Sense Project’s “e-division” will be tackling the topic of body image.

As stated in our lovely Peer Education Manual, “body image is how we feel about our physical selves and how we think others see us. Our body image is influenced by our family, our friends, the media and society in general. It’s influenced by what we think  we ‘should’ look like in order to be attractive and how we think our bodies ‘should’ perform”(p.227).

Of course, having a poor body image has an impact on a person’s sexuality. Here are a few points to consider:

-It can make us settle for unsuitable partners and unhealthy relationships because we don’t think we deserve to be treated with kindness and respect.

-It can make us use sex as a way of feeling “good enough”.

-It can lead us to take sexual risks in order to feel desirable.

-It can interfere with pleasure by bringing up feelings of inadequacy and shame.

-It can make us waste a lot of time, effort and money trying to be something we’re not, while neglecting our own unique qualities (Peer Education Manual, p. 227).

Therefore, this month is an opportunity for all of us to resist “negative-trashing” beliefs and promote inclusive “body-positive” messages.

Cheers!