When asked before her show Tuesday night if there’s anything that she’s uncomfortable talking about, sex education activist Laci Green paused, pursed her lips and said “not really.”
“Masturbation changed my life,” Green told the audience of the Archie Griffin Ballroom in the Ohio Union, while slides of female and male genitalia were displayed behind her.
Green is best known for her YouTube channel where she hosts “Sex Plus,” which she describes as “a frank video series about sexuality.” As of Wednesday evening, the channel had more than 1.3 million subscribers.
As decreed by the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The Office of Student Life Multicultural Center and Student Wellness Center brought Green and her presentation, titled “Best Sex Ever,” to campus as part of their Sexual Assault Awareness Week.
“I think one of the most insidious problems is a lot of bad attitudes about sexual violence,” Green told The Lantern in an interview before her show. “There’s a lot of victim blaming, asking what they were wearing, how drunk they were, how late it was, just asking all the wrong questions.”
Green spent the majority of her presentation focusing on sexuality, however.
“Sexual violence isn’t fun, but sex is a completely different thing,” Green said before the show. “We should be empowered with information so we can stay safe and healthy while indulging.”
As students waited in line, organizers passed out condoms, blindfolds that said “Consent is sexy” and stickers and pins with the “GYT” (Get Yourself Tested) logo.
“(Laci Green) is pretty much everything great in one person: She’s a feminist, she’s sex positive, body positive, an ally for LGBT,” said Michelle Vieira, a fourth-year in painting and drawing, while waiting. “She’s awesome.”
Green began her presentation with an in-depth analysis of genitalia anatomy. She said porn can give unrealistic expectations of labia and penis size, how G-spot stimulation sometimes make people feel like they have to pee, claimed that the clitoris is “the most underrated body part ever” and said that some enjoy prostate stimulation.
The next portion of her presentation was debunking myths about the severity of STDs, noting that they — like most diseases and infections — can be treated fairly easily.
The final portion was focused on what constitutes giving consent. Green had audience members read off cards that were scattered throughout the mostly full ballroom.
“Oh, that feels so good,” was an example of consent, while “I don’t really like this” and not saying anything at all were examples that meant consent was not given.
Knowledge about how the body works, how to use protection and how to ask for consent is the key to the best sex ever, Green concluded.
“Honestly, I think it filled in a lot of gaps that people have when they come to college,” said Sarah Congleton, a fifth-year in business, after the show. “They don’t learn about this stuff in middle school or high school — especially the part of just human physiology. It definitely opened my eyes.”
As people filtered out of the ballroom, The Lonely Island’s “I Just Had Sex” played.
