Nearly 150 people attended the “Best Sex Ever,” lecture on Tuesday, Nov.11 by YouTube star Laci Green, who teaches sex education in her videos and lectures across the country. Green dispelled many popular misconceptions about sexual intercourse ranging from oral sex to the transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STI’s), with an additional discussion about consent.
The lecture began with pictures of both sexual organs, with Green discussing the function of each and pointing out that the clitoris and tip of the penis create the most pleasure. According to Green, oral sex on the clitoris has shown to be more favorable than penetrative intercourse in studies. Discussions also included tips about anal sex, where the prostate for men causes pleasure and later divulged into tips on having safe sex. This includes using lubricant during penetrative sex as it “is an excellent resource to use, in order to make sex more comfortable,” according to Green.
Green later elaborated on double standards between males and females in regards to virginity. According to a study by the Kinsey Institute, 91.8 percent of college-aged men have admitted to masturbation during their lifetime while only 76.8 percent of college-aged women said the same. To help students become more aware of their bodies and surroundings, Green asserted that masturbation is a way for students to become comfortable with themselves which can prepare them to be comfortable with another person.
The hymen was also a point of discussion which dispelled rumors, while acknowledging a double standard females face in regards to virginity. Contrary to the belief that the hymen is a barrier that is “popped,” the hymen is a membrane that protects the vaginal opening, which comes in different shapes and is affected differently through child birth and sex. Repeated sexual intercourse will not remove the hymen, therefore the idea of it maintaining a female’s virginity due to the amount of membrane in the hymen according to Green is not only sexist but also scientifically inaccurate.
STI’s were also discussed, with Green recommending the use of condoms as the best way to prevent these infections. Green invited a random member of the audience to test putting on a condom properly on a sex toy, to the cheers and laughter of many students in the audience. This section was accompanied by a parody of “Gangnam Style,” entitled “Open Condom Style,”a song whose instrumentation was played entirely by condoms.
According to the American Sexual Health Association, more than half of all people will have an STI in their lifetime, with many not even having symptoms for diseases such as chlamydia and gonorrhea, which are the most common. With modern medicine being able to cure or reduce the effects of most of these infections with drugs (with the exception of a new drug resistant gonorrhea), Green encouraged everyone to get tested at least two weeks after they have sex.
Consent was the last topic of the event, with Green discouraging the use of alcohol prior to sex and reminding the audience of what “yes” is. “Yes isn’t someone staying quiet. Yes isn’t someone repeatedly pressured into saying it. Yes is clear and loud,” Green elaborated.
Despite the serious nature of the topic, Green displayed a music video to discuss the issue of consent, which was informative, comedic and dealt with the topic appropriately.
After the lecture, Green explained that the issues discussed are supposed to be what incoming freshman should already know. She explained, “most people don’t know about their own bodies. Most people don’t know about other people’s bodies … Most people don’t know about consent, or how to ask about consent … This is all of the stuff freshman should know when coming into college but don’t because of our messed up education system.”
While Green explained that UCR has proper resources with The Well and consent education, she believes that more can be done. “I think that consent education should be mandatory, particularly for incoming freshman, that the conversation should be ongoing,” Green stated.
While many schools in California are typically more open to these discussions, others have not been as welcoming. “There’s been a little bit of protest (in regards to the “Best Sex Ever” name). There was this incident in Fargo, North Dakota where the news ran a segment about it saying ‘Can you believe what is happening at this school?’ What ended up happening is thousands of people ended up coming to this program and it was probably one of the most successful programs I’ve ever had. So I say bring it on,” Green concluded.
