This April marks the 15th annual Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Since the late 1980s, activists have been fighting for awareness of sexual assault and they chose a week in April to make that happen. It wasn’t until 2001 that the United States finally and officially observed April as SAAM, and since then April has become a very important month on the calendar for survivors, friends and families of survivors, and advocates who work tirelessly to teach the importance of consent.
This year, Trojan is joining the fight by teaming up with Advocates for Youth to get the word out on its campaign, “Consent. Ask For It.” The campaign encourages college students all over the country to not just advocate for consent, but to take a pledge that makes sure consent is always given and received before any sexual activity takes place. When both parties consent, sex is safer, healthier, and just feels better.
Although the “Consent. Ask For It.” campaign is geared toward college students, it doesn’t change the fact that Sexual Assault Awareness Month is about everyone practicing the importance of consent in their sex lives, regardless of age or relationships status.
So in honor of SAAM, here are seven reasons why consent is sexy as hell.
1. Because Sexuality Is Sexy
It’s important to know that sex, wanting to have sex, thinking about having it, and daydreaming about it intermittently throughout the day is sexy.
2. Because It Shows Mutual Respect
When someone you're attracted to respects you, it’s sexy. It shows that they’re not just into you for your body, but your mind, too. When you have the consent talk, you’re showing each other that there’s a mutual respect there.
3. Because It’s Super Hot To Talk About Sex
I think far too many people don’t realize that consent can include dirty talk. For example, you don’t have to ask your partner, “Can I have sex with you now?”. Instead, you can ask for their consent in a way that reveals exactly what you want to do them. You can get creative and detailed — and turn them on in the process.
4. Because It’s Foreplay
Not only can consent be some crazy hot dirty talk, but it can also make for great foreplay. You can start laying the ground work before you get into the bedroom by talking about your fantasies, what you want, and don’t want. You can even start the consent conversation earlier in the day with flirty texts that describe the particulars of the fun to come.
5. Because It’s Empowering
When you take control of your own sex life by deciding who you will sleep with, it’s empowering. You’re taking the reigns and making the right decision for your body.
6. Because You Can Both Relax
Sex with consent isn’t just fun, empowering, hot, and all the things you want sex to be, but it’s comfortable, too. Because you’ve both covered the consent end of things neither one of you can second guess something you did or didn’t do. The lines of communication are wide open, important sex-related aspects have been discussed, and now it’s all about just having a good time.
7. Because It's Not As Complicated As You Might Think
It's simply a matter of putting out there what you want and waiting to get a response. You'll either get a yay or nay, and you go from there.
To show that consent is actually not all that tricky, shortly after California passed their "Yes Means Yes" bill in 2014, a consent porn film was made to show people that consent isn't too hard to discuss at all. and it's still really sexy.
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