Darkness obscures a human’s sight of another, leaving them with only the aromas one smells, words one hears, flavors one tastes, and physiques one feels.
The Student University Activities Board (SUAB), along with the Resident Housing Association (RHA) and Queen In You, invited Aggies into the dark on Feb. 28, illuminating the pitch-black lecture hall with glowing sticks and balloons to host an interactive discussion about all things sexual health.
This is the third annual Sex in the Dark event hosted by the SUAB and Kendall Johnson, a senior public relations student and SUAB Speakers Chair, hopes to ensure that this event continues to happen annually.
“Last year, (Sex in the Dark) went virtual. This year, however, we are back in person and we feel it is important… that knowledge is the first step to getting us as a campus to be safe and us as a Greensboro community to be safe,” Johnson said. “If your parents did not talk to you (about sex) or you did not have that (sexual education) class in high school, this is the place for you to come with questions. At this age, there is a lot of judging, so having these questions be anonymous (adds to why) this is such a freeing space to be in.”
The hosting student organizations recruited the help of two nationally-recognized sex educators—Donté Smith (they/them/theirs), the lead patient educator for infectious diseases at Legacy Community Health based in Houston, Texas, and Dorian Solot (she/her/hers), co-founder of Sex Discussed Here! based in Albany, New York).
Students anonymously submitted questions to an online Q & A platform moderated by the experts, with topics ranging from conflict resolution in the bedroom to debunking sexually transmitted infections or STIs.
When students asked the latter question, Donté prefaced the importance of positive sexual health and identity in Black, nonwhite, and indigenous communities, referencing the historical and still prevalent impact of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) on Black communities—Black people made up 42% of new HIV diagnoses in the United States in 2019 according to a CDC surveillance report. Donté tied this to sexual education and, ultimately, liberation.
“Sex is inherently tied in all these other systems (racism, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, heterosexism, and misogynoir)…that unfortunately affect our ability to experience pleasure… unless we decolonize them (and) expand the idea of connectivity,” Donté said. “As a black person, doing this…supporting my people…at an HBCU on the last day of Black History Month feels really special.”
Aggies met Smith and Solot’s excitement for sex education by finishing their sentences during a lightning round, where the experts only answered the students’ sex-related questions in a sentence or less. The audience responded unwaveringly, for instance, to the age-old question of whether or not size mattered.
“It is not the size of the boat but the motion of the—,” Solot paused.
“OCEAN,” Aggies answered back.
Dorian had a chance to comment on the atmosphere before talking with a group of students.
“It was awesome. I loved the way people kept trickling in and coming, where each time I looked up there were more people in the room. When we had the audience brainstorm, I loved all of the wisdom as they were giving each other advice…the snaps and the laughter…it was a great event,” Solot said.
For more information about SUAB’s upcoming events, you can follow them on Instagram (@ncatsuab).
For more information and resources on sexual health, please look to these sources:
- Dorian Solot: [email protected]
- Sex Discussed Here!: http://www.sexualityeducation.com/#.
