How do we begin important conversations about sex, sexuality, and sexual orientation?
I don't know.
I'm not really sure.
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"Until very recently in human history, for the average human being, there was no such luxury as a bedroom, or even a bed. Although, by today's sexual standards this situation may seem awkward, it was not without its advantages. One advantage was that sexual abuse of children could not happen without at least the knowledge and tacit consent of the entire family. Another, less obvious benefit of this age-old living arrangement was that throughout the life cycle, from birth to death, sex was always before you, and no one could deny that it was a vital, essential, and a not-too-mysterious aspect of daily human existence.
And then, by the period that we know as the Victorian era, everything had changed. Suddenly, the average middle-class family lived in a multi-room dwelling. Children grew up having never witnessed the primal act. And suddenly sex became hidden, private, mysterious, frightening, and dirty. The era of sexual repression in Western Civilization had begun.
In this repressed society, women were covered from neck to ankle, and even the furniture legs were covered with skirts, since the sight of these legs disturbed the delicate sensitivities of that era. Yet at the same time that this society repressed sex, it appears to have become obsessed by it. Pornography as we know it blossomed. Child Prostitution flourished. And a wave of sexual child abuse began to ripple down through the generations." - Grossman (Military Psychologist) - "On Killing"
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"On average, one underage girl brings in $200,000 a year. The [sex] industry as a whole makes $32 billion a year, a figure higher than most Fortune 500 corporations.
According to the End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking (ECPAT) of Children for Sexual Purposes, around 100,000 U.S. children are forcefully engaged in prostitution or pornography each year...The United States is the number one demand country for trafficked children as well as the number one supplier." - Rahab's Hideaway per www.traffick911.com/
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The perils of capitalism and the free market. Is there a difference between McDonalds, Disneyland, and The Lion's Den?
Unlikely that the economy is going to change anytime soon, how do we begin to evaluate/re-evaluate our perspectives on sexuality in our culture? And with all the horrific, inhumane sexual acts and crimes being enacted right underneath our noses - how can we yet still celebrate sex and sexuality in a way that is wonderful and spiritual - while also shedding light on some of the darkest corners of the free market where young girls are kept in dog cages until they are rented or sold to the highest bidder?
Again, I am not sure.
However, I want to look at two or three or four cultural issues that are directly or indirectly linked...Marriage, Homosexuality, Violence, and Individual Freedom to begin with I guess. Maybe religion too? Probably.
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