CC
Places like barber shops
were known to sell condoms
on the down low.

 

NO REVOLUTION CAN BE
PERFECT

Today, examples like the song “WAP” by Cardi B speak
to the comprehensive integration of sexual liberation into
media. Clearly the sexual revolution brought society many
benefits: increased personal agency, improved mental and
physical health, and a more accepted and nuanced view of
recreational sex—but there are still a host of issues brought
forth by activists on all sides. Some highlight that the
family unit faced a lot of destruction in the face of the 1960s
sexual revolution. As the idea that sex for procreation had
been pushed aside, it is argued that this revolution broke
families, created fatherless homes, and forced an increase
in abortions.

A Daily Mail UK article written by a woman that
was in her 20s during the sexual revolution of the 1960s
emphasizes on the problems that come with having sex
for the express purpose of proving your freedom. In her
article she writes of her own experience being filled with
dangerous and unpleasant encounters because of how
ill-equipped her generation was to explore their sexuality.
Without an understanding of her personal needs or a sexual
education to guide her, she (and her peers) were “exploited
mercilessly” during the pill’s sex revolution. These concerns
mirror many of today’s culture; what will encouraging
youth to sexual liberation—in what some call a haphazard
fashion—result in for this generation?

ZA NER

  

 

WHAT IS IMPACTING SEX TODAY?

This period in history has not been a simple one to navigate
sexually. Technology brings forth issues like revenge
porn—which only became illegal in 2014 for Canada. In
2019, there were 5,000 complaints—and some cases sadly
involved some of the victims of this crime taking their own
lives (such as Amanda Todd).

Physiological changes have been observed in the
population as well; girls are experiencing puberty a year
earlier than they did in the 1970s, and this can have serious
implications for their health and their experience of sex. The
people sexualized in media and culture are getting younger
and younger—and many are concerned about the lasting
impacts of this on sexually immature youth.

Current trends suggest the new generation is having
less sex than their predecessors as well. A US study named
“Trends in Frequency of Sexual Activity and Number of
Sexual Partners” which looked at adults between the ages
of 18 and 44 from the years of 2000 to 2018 found that one in
three men reported having no sexual experiences that year.

Men were at 33 percent for sexual inactivity in 2018 and
women were at 19 percent during the same time period.
Some propose that pornography is having an impact on
levels of sex, and others focus the idea that adulthood is
facing delays in this day and age.

Nearly everyone contributes to the revolution of sex
in one way or another—even those bumping uglies on
Valentine’s Day.

CC
Within five years of the pill
being available in America,
nearly six million women
were already using it.

 

Illustrations bv CJ Sommerfeld