Newest accessory: Condom holders aren't just for convenience.

Condoms? Yes please. A cute, incognito way to stash my condoms…but still have them within reach? Yes again.

Lets be honest, girls will find any excuse to buy cute accessories, whether it’s for their outfits, apartments, or their condoms. Though it could be used as a shopping excuse, the practicality of the array of new, fun condom holders on sale is reason enough to buy. Not many want to display their array of condom choices in public view, but stashing them at the bottom of your drawer, or losing them in that giant “purse” you carry around is just not convenient. Well ladies (and gents) those days of fumbling blindly in your drawer or purse are gone!

There are now a ton of options and ways to store your protection. The Frisky has a great article showcasing different options for condom holders. There are clean, sleek condom dispensers that hold a significant amount and are perfect for a guy’s nightstand, so they are always within reach. If you’re main concern isn’t just convenience but instead want something a little more disguised and stylish, there are several vase-like options. The newest trend seems to be sleek cases meant to hold one or two condoms and stored in your purse. Many look just like a stylish compact. I even discovered a cool website where you can design your own!


Basically, your options are endless when it comes to storing your condoms. Whether you’re looking for an industrial-sized dispenser or a sleek, fashionable holder for your purse, there’s a condom holder out there for you…so get shopping!

p.s. if you’re not in the market for a holder but still want some cute protection, check out the different lines of Proper Attire condoms.

Blog for International Women's Day!

Today is International Women's Day! Gender Across Borders is organizing a massive blog effort - the theme is "Equal Rights, Equal Opportunity," and today, I'm thinking about the Oscars.

Yesterday, Kathryn Bigelow became the first women to win the Academy Award for best director for her work with The Hurt Locker - an important achievement in a field almost completely dominated by men.

Throughout the Oscars, despite this milestone and shattering of another glass ceiling, I couldn't help but see inequality all night. I'm in a class called "Fashion and Feminism: The Politics of Dress" this semester, and I was particularly interested in the fashion throughout the evening. Of course, this is nothing new - the men wear basically identical tuxes (although very expensive and designer-made, of course) while the women strut around in the craziest contraptions. But I kept noticing women having trouble going up and down the stairs on the stage - some women even needed assistance, assumedly because their dresses were too constricting or revealing. Kathryn Bigelow was clutching her chest when she won best picture - I was afraid she would faint (although perhaps it wasn't because of her tight dress, I probably would've fainted had i just won Best Director and Best Picture, back to back). Either way, I was fascinated by this slight juxtaposition.

While women have come a long way, and now a female has won best director, how many female directors can you name? Does this equalizing force mean that women have equal opportunity in this field? Just something to think about.

Changing gears entirely, International Women's Day is a day to recognize women and celebrate women's rights, as well as recognize change and progress worldwide. On the global stage, Kathryn Bigelow's win is meaningful, but there are slightly more pressing matters. Planned Parenthood has been committed to investing in girls and women globally for more than 40 years. In terms of reproductive health, we still have a long way to go. While contraception usage has increased, more women are attending school for longer, and more women are in governments than ever, there are still glaring issues. Over 200 million women who wan't to use contraception don't have access it, and every year, half a million women die from pregnancy-related causes, and 20 million have unsafe abortions. Planned Parenthood Federation of America is working within the federal government, and overseas to help with this epidemic.

I'm in the middle of reading Michelle Goldberg's new book, "The Means of Reproduction: Sex power, and the Future of the World," which addresses these issues head on. I think when we talk about reproductive health and equality, we lose sight of what this looks like from an international point of view, and Goldberg puts a persuasive, urgent lens on the idea of reproductive rights. I recommend it, and maybe I'll make a more cohesive blog post about it in a few weeks (spring break can't come soon enough!). For now though, let's celebrate all the gains women have made internationally, while not losing sight of all the work ahead of us. Happy International Women's Day!

Adventures in Sex City: Can a video game be a Sex-Ed tool?

Though it wasn’t terribly long ago, I can only remember what my sexual education consisted of when I think really, really, hard. I do not even recall any health education classes before high school, and I think this might be due to the fact that I found the whole process of sitting in a classroom, full of my peers, while my crazy teacher held up and pointed out different forms of birth control, terribly uncomfortable and embarrassing.

However, that is basically all my health class covered in relation to sex. Our teacher held up, explained, and passed around a box full of different forms of contraception. We were then required to fill out a worksheet about them, and subsequently quizzed on the varying effectiveness percentages and who they were best suitable for. Sex may have been covered for maybe a week of class time if I round up…and to be honest I do not think anyone absorbed any of the material. This may be due to numerous reasons but personally, I think it is because it was treated as a taboo topic…even in our health class!

The teacher even seemed to be slightly embarrassed to be holding condoms in front of her 15 year-old students…so how could we not exude the uncomfortable feelings right back to her? Because of this mutual uncomfortable-ness, there was no interactive learning whatsoever in this class. There were no discussions prompted, or questions asked, or any sort of interactive learning tactics used at all. In my opinion, interactive learning is most important to keep the message you are teaching stuck in a student’s brain. That, along with connecting it to a way the students will care about it and feel comfortable learning about it, is vital.

The UK seems to have recognized this as well and has come up with a virtual video game to help spread important messages about sex. Adventures in Sex City, created by the UK's Middlesex-London Health Unit, uses characters like The Sperminator, Wonder Vag, and Willy the Kid to engage teens to learn important sexual facts.

Though at first glance I was extremely skeptical, as I delved further into the material and got a sample glance of some of the characters and messages displayed, I started to think that this was genius. Why had someone not come up with a sex-ed video game sooner? Pre-teens and teenagers are notorious of being glued to their computer screens and video game consoles…so of course a video game would get their attention! Topics from abstinence, condoms, STIs to virginity were all covered in the preview that I saw. Though some may think the idea is cheesy, I think it would have definitely gotten my peers’ attention more than the textbook we were forced to read, and the irrelevant facts we were supposed to memorize in my high school.

Hopefully some companies will expand on this idea and bring it over to the States. Though I think the game can be improved to not be so silly and ridiculous, it is a great starting point….and is undoubtedly more entertaining than the old textbooks and sex-ed movies I was forced to sit uncomfortabley through as an adolescent. Hopefully these new interactive video games will save future health class goers from the same health class experiences I had to endure.

How was YOUR National Condom Week?

Valentine’s Day is sometimes seen as a cheesy hallmark holiday that causes awkward “I love you” moments, filled with expensive dinners, flowers, and chocolates. But if you take a break from the Hallmark attacks, there is something nice about taking time out of your busy life to acknowledge your commitment, love and trust to your significant other. Or to do something sweet for friends and family you love.

Valentine’s Day was also the beginning of National Condom Week, which runs February 14 – February 21st. What better way to show love for your partner than to have safer sex, and talk about condoms, sexual health and love?

During National Condom Week, Planned Parenthood distributed as many free condoms as possible—thousands all over the U.S. You may have seen our Vox chapters spreading the love at SUNY Brockport, SUNY Cortland, or SUNY Geneseo. Perhaps you ran into one of our educators at the Tap & Mallet last weekend giving out fun valentine’s-day themed condom and candy gift bags.

Getting condoms to everybody is an important first step in promoting safer sex. However, once you have the condom, it is just as important to know how to properly use it, and what your back up plan will be if it breaks. (For example, having a packet of emergency contraception in your medicine cabinet just in case.) Discussing these options and ideas with your partner before sex is just as important as making sure you have plenty of condoms onhand.

Remember that male condoms are not the only way to practice safer sex. Female condoms, when used correctly, have been proven to be 79%-95% effective in preventing pregnancies. Also available are hormonal types of birth control, such as the patch or the pill (although these methods do not protect against STIs).

Safer sex isn’t only important for vaginal sex, but for oral or anal sex, too. Yes, the risk of pregnancy goes away. However, it is still possible to transmit STIs via these methods. So use a barrier method like a condom or dental dam for oral and anal sex, too.

In conclusion, stock up, discuss, and have lots of fun. But don’t forget about respecting yourself, and for THAT reason alone insist on condoms.

Hope you had a HAPPY NATIONAL CONDOM WEEK! What did you do to celebrate?

Superbowl Sunday Ad: Controversial?

Pizza, football, chicken wings, beer….and anti-choice commercials? The biggest buzz about the Super Bowl this year is not the teams playing or the half time show but a 30-second ad by the anti-choice group, Focus on the Family. The ad, featuring football superstar Tim Tebow, has both anti-choice and pro-choice groups up in arms. According to Focus on the Family, the commercial will share the personal story of Pam Tebow, Tim Tebow’s mother. Mrs. Tebow has spoken in the past about her difficult decision to continue her pregnancy during a serious illness, against her doctor’s advice. Her pregnancy resulted in the birth of her son, Tim Tebow, who is now a famous football player.

As this ad shows, because of Roe v Wade, women have the legal right to make decisions about their health that are best for them and their families. This is a right that must be preserved to strengthen the health of women and their families. However, this is not an ad that has a pro-choice message. If you look at the Focus on the Family, their long-stated agenda has been to overturn Roe V. Wade. If Focus on the Family is successful in repealing a woman’s right to choose, women facing a high-risk pregnancy like Pam Tebow’s would not have the ability to make the personal health decision that is right for them. Women with high-risk pregnancies, who know that their lives or the lives of their fetuses are at risk, deserve to have every medical option available to them to consider in consultation with medical professionals. Pam Tebow made the choice to keep her child and the right to do so.

Despite the appeal of the Tebow family story, it is important to remember that Focus on the Family’s goal is to overturn Roe v. Wade and outlaw abortion. This is a position that runs counter to what the majority of Americans believe. Focus on the Family has every right to spend $3 million as it chooses, but it is surprising, at a time when so many individuals in the U.S. and around the world are in need of aid, that a Super Bowl ad is the organization’s priority. The commercial is slated to air on this Sunday’s Superbowl broadcast.

The following is a video featuring Sean James that has been put out by Planned Parenthood:

Scott Roeder found guilty

“At this time, we hope that George can be remembered for his legacy of service to women (and) the help he provided for those who needed it and the love and happiness he provided us as a husband, father and grandfather.” – Statement on behalf of Jeanne Tiller, Dr. Tiller’s wife

This past Friday, a Kansas jury convicted Scott Roeder of first degree murder in the killing of Dr. George Tiller. I was happy to learn that it only took jurors 37 minutes to find Roeder guilty. He was also convicted of two counts of aggravated assault for pointing his gun at two church members. This verdict is important because it sends the message that a difference of beliefs is never a justifiable reason for murder. Cecile Richards, President of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, issued a statement affirming support for Roeder’s conviction. She said, “Doctors who perform abortions deserve and must receive the full protection of the law. To that end, we are gratified that Judge Warren Wilbert prohibited the argument that Scott Roeder’s deeply felt anti-abortion beliefs made him less culpable for Dr. Tiller’s murder, therefore not allowing the jury to consider the lesser charge of manslaughter.” Family Planning Advocates of NYS President,Tracey Brooks, said the “conviction reinforces the strongly held American value that violence is never the solution to our differences."

Roeder’s trial began on January 22, which was also the 37th anniversary of Roe. V. Wade. Before the trial had even started, Roeder publicly admitted to shooting Dr. Tiller at his church on May 31st. During the trial, Scott Roeder also admitted he had planned to kill Dr. Tiller for many years and had even taken a gun to Tiller’s church before. Roeder argued that his reason for committing the murder was to “halt the death of babies”. This chilling “reason” made Judge Wilbert publicly admit the importance of keeping the issue of abortion, and even the word itself, out of the courtroom. From what was reported from the trial, it seemed that he did a great job at doing just that.

Judge Wilbert originally considered giving jurors the option of convicting Roeder of voluntary manslaughter, which is defined as "an unreasonable but honest belief that circumstances existed that justified deadly force" under Kansas statute. If convicted for voluntary manslaughter, Roeder would have only received a sentence of around five years, as opposed to a possible life sentence if convicted of first-degree murder. The possible use of this defense worried me that a conviction of voluntary manslaughter would have negatively opened the doors for many other killings of this nature. However, as hoped for, Judge Wilbert rejected this defense.

Although I am relieved that justice has been served in this trial, it is impossible to forget the loss of Dr. George Tiller. His bravery to continue working despite numerous attempts on his life and threats to his practice showed his dedication and commitment to helping women. Tiller is the fourth abortion doctor to be killed in the United States since 1993. While I applaud the jury for their fair and honest conviction, it is impossible to overlook the fact that the issue of protecting abortion providers is still far from being resolved.

My Generation, Threats to Roe, and a Call to Action

Last week, as we celebrated the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, I couldn't help but do some deep thinking about my generation and the future of reproductive justice. In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court decision on Roe v. Wade guaranteed a federal Constitutional right to abortion. When I was born, a decade later in 1983, the world had changed for women.

My generation grew up in a post-Roe world. We knew about condoms and birth control and in NYS, we could get birth control without parental consent. Some of us had comprehensive sex ed in our schools (though too many of us still suffered through ineffective abstinence-only programs). We’ve had access to safe and legal reproductive health services all our lives.

Fast forward to today, thirty-seven years post-Roe; my generation is facing the most egregious attack on our reproductive rights of our lifetime. As our federal government debates different proposals to reform health care, abortion access has become the political football.