I don’t know what to write in this space right now. On March 3, Sarah Everard was kidnapped and murdered in South London, an act that was eventually attributed to a police officer. On March 16, eight people were killed in Atlanta, Georgia, in what was a clearly a racially- and sexually-motivated mass shooting. I could expand on the stories here, but you already know them. Still, it seems necessary to take a moment here. In acknowledgment.
Why do men feel entitled to our bodies? Why are their acts of sexual violence our responsibility? I could mention again how these are lessons learned early on. Cultural conditioning. But I’d rather just tear at my hair and scream.
While I’m doing that, I’ll just place these other news items right here:
- SIECUS has recently released two fantastic publications that I can’t wait to dive into: History of Sex Education and Comprehensive Sex Education for Youth with Disabilities: A Call to Action.
- In Washington, Senate Bill 5395 was passed, which requires all public schools in the state to provide comprehensive sexual health education by the 2022-23 school year. This went into effect back in December, but we neglected to highlight it here, and we feel that all the wins need to be celebrated.
Action Items
- On Wednesday, April 7, at 7 p.m. EST, educator Ashley Robertson will be teaching a workshop on potty training and early sex ed. Learn more here.
- Bianca Laureano, Ph.D., MA, CSES and Cory Silverberg, MA, are presenting a virtual, two-day training intensive on youth sexuality for practicing and emerging sexuality professionals. This SAR takes place on June 10 and June 11, and costs $350. Learn more here.
- We now have the option to purchase recordings of past Sex Ed Lectures we missed. Huzzah!
- If you’re a parent looking for workshops for either yourself or your child, this is a heads up that I recently launched an Events Calendar on the site, on which I track educational events being offered by other educators on my radar.