Just when Americans thought the only way to get a job in this economy was with Ivy League education, it turns out that they cannot fully appreciate sex (all kinds of sex) without one either!
The week before, and days leading up to, Valentine’s Day (Feb 4-14) are known as “Sex Week” at Yale.
“Sexual culture is not homogeneous. We differ not only in the way we understand sexual culture, but also in the way we negotiate our place inside of it,” organizers explain on their website. “Conversations about sexuality matter to us because they implicate ideas about what we should and should not do with our bodies; ideas that affect not only our physical, emotional, and mental well-being, but also the social environment around us.”
According to the 2012 “Sex Week” schedule the days are packed with activities, classes and lectures sure to make the average co-ed’s grandmother blush.
To name a few:
“What You Really Really Want: How to Pursue Sexuality in the Real World,” “XXX Haiku Workshop,” “Masturbation: Perspectives from the Middle East & Beyond,” “Avoiding & Achieving Pregnancy: What Your Government Does to Help,” Queer and Orthodox: Rabbi Steve Greenberg, “Work It: Founder of Babeland Sex Toys talks about Queer-Friendly Business and Pleasing Women,” “Maggie Mayhem with Cindy Gallop on Sex, Sex on Camera, and the Porn Industry,” “Fornication 101 with Oh Megan!”….you get the picture
Last fall, Yale banned “Sex Week” from campus following complaints from a conservative group called Undergraduates for a Better Yale College (UBYC), who charged the organizers with taking money from the porn industry (a charge the organizers denied), Business Insider reported. The fact that the school came under a Title IX investigation last year for its sexual harassment and sexual assault policies likely played into the change as well, according to National Review.
“We heard over and over from students, faculty, and staff that ‘Sex Week at Yale,’ a student-sponsored event, is highly problematic,” the university wrote in a statement. “A student-initiated event begun in 2002, it has described itself as ‘a campus-wide interdisciplinary sex education program.’ Over time, this event clearly has lost the focus of its stated intention and in recent years it has prominently featured titillating displays, ‘adult’ film stars, and commercial sponsors of such material.”
The College Fix reported that the school reversed its decision a few weeks later to allow “Sex Week” to continue — the only difference is that Yale’s name is not to be included in any of the materials.
The group that complained about “Sex Week” in the fall, UBYC, will also be recognizing the days comprising “Sex Week,” but the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day will be “True Love Week,” focused on promoting relationships, chastity, marriage and love.
According to the Yale Daily News, while “Sex Week” has a target budget of $20,000 “True Love Week” has a budget of about $6,000.